Tron: Salvation
by FallenAngel2013
Summary: A longtime friend of Sam Flynn, Juno Strider goes with him to Flynn's Arcade when he asks her to come, but everything she knows changes when she too is sucked into the Grid. Once separated from her friend, Juno is held hostage by Clu and put under the watchful eye of Rinzler, and a User and a Program discover that the other is exactly what they didn't know they needed...Tron/OFC
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: **_**AUish… Set during **_**Tron: Legacy**_**. Tron/OFC**_

_**I'd originally posted this story back in mid-2011, but after rereading it, I came to realize that there was so much more I wanted to include and things I wanted to fix, some of the spelling errors making me cringe, so I took it down temporarily to rework it. And now it's back!  
**_

_**A lot of the spelling and grammar mistakes have been corrected, and just about each original chapter has some new dialog and descriptions and whatnot, but the plot of the story has not changed. Looking at it now, I strongly believe that it has been vastly improved. I had informed followers of this story that I was going to add more chapters, but what I've done instead is extend some chapters with "new scenes" by 1,000 words or more because that flowed more in my opinion and just fits better. Any chapter that has been extended to any significant degree will be listed as an "extended chapter" in an A/N.  
**_

**Disclaimer:**_** I do not own **_**Tron**_**.**_

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"This had better be important," Juno Strider muttered as she drove to _Flynn's Arcade_.

It was four in the morning and she had been sleeping peacefully until Sam Flynn called her, asking her to meet him at the arcade as soon as possible. She certainly hadn't been thrilled at being woken up so early when she had to be up at eight in order to have time to shower and eat before following through with her schedule. Along with grocery shopping – her fridge was nearly empty – the most important thing she had to do was make the long drive to the airport to pick up her older brother, Marcus, on leave from the Marine Corp for a while.

Everyone in her family had been in the military, and Marcus was the only family she had left. Her father, a Marine, died when she was one, killed by a land mine. Her mother, a pilot in the Air Force, died four years ago when her helicopter crashed. Marcus was a Marine but was thankfully still alive. She hoped he would stay that way for a very long time.

A few days ago he told her that he was going to be coming back to the States for a while, so she had to be awake to make the rather long drive to the airport to pick him up at one in the afternoon. Though she was excited to have him stay with her for a week before he returned to his own place a few blocks away, she was going to have to leave at eleven and wouldn't be back until around three. Given that she would want to spend the rest of the evening catching up with her brother, she would have to take care of her grocery shopping and making sure the guest bedroom was ready before she left to go get him. Eight in the morning was the latest she could be up by. By all rights, she should still be in bed sleeping, but Sam was her friend, a brother to her, and so she'd sacrifice her time to sleep to help him out.

It sounded like he needed it.

A page from his father's arcade.

It seemed completely impossible, but Sam had been serious when he said that Alan had received one. He hadn't lied to her before so she seriously doubted he would start now.

Pulling her silver Camaro over near Sam's motorcycle, she sighed and looked at her reflection in the rear-view mirror. It was painfully obvious that she'd just woken up a short while ago. There wasn't an ounce of makeup on her face – normally she wore black eyeliner and black eye shadow to enhance her emerald green eyes – and her long blond hair was a bit wavier than she liked it to be considering she typically straightened her hair after waking up but didn't take the time to do so this time. The only things she took the time to do were brush her teeth, run a brush quickly through her hair, and change into dark blue jeans, a dark green t-shirt with a black leather jacket over it, and boots.

Sighing at her less than perfect reflection, she took her purse from the passenger seat and twisted in hers to shove it under the numerous shopping bags in the back, not seeing the need to bring it in with her. She stared at the shopping bags filled with clothes, shaking her head.

Her best friend, Cindy, had dragged her out shopping before work yesterday and she'd bought three shirts, a few pairs of jeans and skirts, shoes, bra and pantie sets, as well as some new clothes and shoes for her brother since she'd accidentally donated a few of his he left behind at her place to good will, mistaking them for her ex-boyfriend's clothes. By the time she got home from work, she'd been exhausted and chose to wait until morning to bring everything in. Leaving the bags in the car made it look like a wreck.

Deciding that she'd spent enough time in the car, she turned off the engine and climbed out, locking it before looking at the arcade in front of her.

For a moment she just stood there, looking up at the sign above the arcade, remembering the times she'd gone there as a kid, when she met Sam. The sign had been so bright, beckoning both kids and adults to come in and lose themselves in the gaming universe, to bring the arcade to life. It didn't seem right for the sign to be so… dead looking.

As if rectifying that problem, the sign suddenly flickered to life and she started a bit before noticing that the door to the arcade was cracked open.

Figuring that Sam had turned on the lights, she went on in and was nearly overwhelmed by the familiar noise of games and one of her favorite songs was playing – _Separate Ways_ by Journey. It was the same and different at the same time. All the games were the same, the music the same, but everything was covered with plastic and the place was filthy. Instead of the scent of french fries, hot dogs, and popcorn filling the air, an unpleasantly musty smell lingered in the air.

Ahead of her was Sam standing before one of the games, holding up the plastic.

"Brings back memories, doesn't it?" Juno asked, coming up next to her friend as he studied the condition of the game.

"Yeah, yeah it does." Putting his arm around her in a half hug, Sam gave her a squeeze. "Thanks for coming."

She shrugged. "Who needs sleep?"

"You didn't have to come, you know."

"I know, but I did." Brushing away an errant strand of long blond hair, she asked, "So, explain to me how exactly Alan was paged when Kevin's office number has been disconnected for years."

Breathing out a sigh, Sam just shook his head. "I really don't know, Juno. That was one of the reasons why it took me so long to come here and check things out."

She arched a brow. "When did Alan tell you about the page?"

"Well, I pulled the prank on ENCOM at about nine-thirty, spent a while at the police department before I bailed myself out." He did the math in his head before shrugging. "It was around twelve by the time I got home and found Alan there waiting. So, yeah, it was probably twelve when he told me about it."

"Twelve? It's after four, Sam! How come it took you so long to decide whether or not to come here?" Juno questioned, irritated that he couldn't have decided to come earlier when she'd actually been at least half awake.

Covering a game back up, he sighed. "Worried about what I'd find, I guess."

An ache settled in her chest, irritation fading just a little, and she wrapped her arms around him middle. "The most it could be is some asshole playing a mean joke on you and Alan," she pointed out quietly.

"You're probably right," he agreed, but sighed heavily, arms tight around her. "But you never know."

Though he didn't say, she knew he was hoping to find his father, or something hinting to where his father was, or even just some evidence that he was dead or alive. And he she was, giving him an attitude because he was uncertain about coming and had to think about it for a few hours.

"Sorry I got snippy with you," she apologized tiredly.

"It's cool. I wouldn't expect anything other than snippiness from you when you wake up. I pity any guy who's ever stayed the night with you," he chuckled.

"Hey!" She pulled back and poked him hard in the chest. "I'm not that bad."

"Last time you stayed at my place you slapped me for waking you up too early."

"I like my sleep!" she protested, but she knew that she wasn't a morning person and had a tendency to be a bit temperamental for a while after waking up.

He just smiled at her and gave her a pat on the back. "Come on, sleeping beauty. Help me look around."

"What exactly are we looking for?" she asked as she started wandering around the place.

It took him a minute to answer. "I'm not really sure. But that page didn't come out of thin air. Someone had to have sent it."

"You think they're still here?"

"No, they're probably long gone. Just look for anything out of place."

That was hard to do considering she hadn't been there for years and couldn't remember what was even in its right place. For all she knew things could have been moved around. Everything was dusty and covered with plastic, not to mention there were cobwebs everywhere. Of course it would be easy to tell if someone else had been there recently as there would be shoe imprints in the dust on the floor. At least then they would know that someone had been there at some point. But as she looked around, she saw no sign that anyone had been in there.

A game with neon green lights caught her attention and she moved the plastic away, a small smile coming to her face. She used to play the game all the time when she came to Flynn's with Sam. As she recalled, she'd always beaten Sam each and every time. He would then challenge her to a game he was good at and beat her constantly. It all evened out in the long run, she supposed, each of them having a game they were good at.

Covering up the machine again, she got back to the task at hand and continued to search for… well, for whatever looked out of place while Sam checked his father's office.

Idly, she began humming in time with the lyrics to _Separate Ways_.

Nothing caught her eye and after a while she just slumped back against a random game. Everything was fine, dirty, but fine. Maybe she could find the time to come back and clean up the place a bit. It seemed insulting to Kevin Flynn to have the place looking bad. It would be a waste of effort though. No one would be coming to visit the arcade again.

"Dad and I played that game all the time," Sam said suddenly and she looked up to find him walking towards her, looking at something behind her.

"Huh?" She stared at him, ceasing her humming.

"The game you're using as a backrest," he said, looking past her. "I use to play it all the time with him."

Frowning, she looked up at the barely readable sign above her.

_TRON_.

"Oh, yeah, I remember. Your dad acted like a little kid when he beat you. Or anybody for that matter," she said with a smile. "You'd think he'd won a million bucks."

Sam returned it, but it didn't reach his eyes. "He loved his games."

"That he did," she said, nodding in agreement.

Stepping away from the machine, she pulled the plastic away and found the game to be playing a demo. Two characters on light-cycles, one blue and one gold, were racing around. It had been one of her favorite games, but Sam and Kevin were much better at it than she was. Probably because they played it together nonstop. She remembered sitting in a chair she dragged over to watch them play, eating some french fries and giggling at their reactions when one of them lost, and smiling when they cheered if they were playing a team game and won. The memory alone made her heart ache. Kevin may not have been her father, but he'd be the closest thing she had to one. His disappearance hurt her almost as much as it hurt Sam.

Shaking away the memories, Juno asked, "Did you find anything?"

"No, you?"

"No." Putting her hand on his arm, she added softly, "I don't think we're gonna find anything, Sam."

"You're probably right," he admitted a tad reluctantly. "I don't know what I was even looking for."

"Closure?" she offered.

"Maybe."

"Let's just go. You look like you could use some sleep." She tugged on his arm but he didn't budge.

"In a second," he said, digging around in his pocket, pulling out a quarter. "I want to play one game. For old time's sake."

Giving a small nod, she went back to standing beside him, wanting to watch as he played the old game. Just like old times.

Staring at the quarter, he looked a little reluctant to put it in the machine, and for good reason. It was the quarter his father had given him the night he disappeared. Sam had said to her once that Kevin told him "the first round was on him" and tossed him the coin. Ever since he kept it in his pocket, tucked safely away from the other change. Perhaps giving it up was the first step to truly moving on.

He glanced at her and she gave him an encouraging smile.

Swallowing, he placed the quarter in the slot, and watched as it fell out onto the floor near Juno's boot.

Sam rubbed the back of his neck, disappointed. "Must be broken."

"Yeah," she murmured, bending down to pick it up. Picking it up, something caught her eyes and she brushed her fingers against some indentations in the floor. "Sam, check this out."

Kneeling down beside her, he examined the marks then looked at the game curiously. Rising to his feet, he ushered her back as he grabbed hold of the side of the machine and pulled. It screeched in protest but moved to reveal a small door.

The two were equally surprised to see the door. Kevin Flynn was a bit strange, no doubt about that, but this was a different kind of strange.

Sam pulled out his flashlight and stepped through the doorway, motioning for her to follow. It was dark and she held onto the back of Sam's leather jacket more for reassurance than guidance through the dark. The place was creepy and looked almost like a dungeon. At the bottom of the stares, they came to a door and found some keys in the lock. Sam turned the handle and found that the door was unlocked.

They hesitated, both curious to find what lay in the room but reluctant to find out at the same time. Hell, for all they knew there could be a body lying on the other side! Juno did not want to find a corpse, let alone Kevin's corpse.

Taking a deep breath, Sam turned the door knob and walked inside. Juno stayed back, waiting for him to say it was okay to enter.

"Son of a gun," her murmured and waved her inside, casting the beam from his flashlight around the room.

Coming in behind him, the young woman stared at all the strange objects and the gun-like thing off to the side. It looked like a laser gun or something that she'd expect to see in a sci-fi film, not in the basement of an arcade.

"Your dad had way too much free time on his hands," she commented.

"You're telling me," he agreed, taking it all in.

She went over to a board on the wall and found multiple photos pinned to it. Most were of Sam – both with and without his dad – but there were a few of her and Marcus. One photo in particular made her smile sadly, and she ran her fingers delicately over the withered photo. In the photo, Kevin was sitting back on the couch in his office above the arcade with one arm around seven-year-old Sam and the other around six-year-old Juno while Marcus – ten at the time – took the picture. Though her mom, Amanda, wasn't in the picture, she remembered her leaning against the desk smiling at them while they smiled brightly for the camera.

It was taken a week before Kevin went missing.

Sighing, she looked away from it, but swore to take it with her before they left.

Sam walked over to a bare table that was covered in a thick layer of dust. For a moment, he just looked at it, and then wiped away some of the dust, revealing a computer screen.

Standing beside him, she frowned. "This place hasn't been touched since '89. Isn't this a little too advanced for that time?"

"Too advanced was never in my dad's vocabulary," Sam stated, taking a seat in the equally dusty chair and wiping away some more dust. "If he thought it was remotely possible, he'd find a way to make it so." He tapped a button and the computer reacted. The fact that it was touch screen surprised Juno even more.

Going into tech-mode, Sam started typing away, searching for answers that may or may not be hidden in the machine's memory. All the while she didn't say a word and allowed him the time to sort through the stuff he was looking at, only understanding some of it.

She'd gone to school to be a bartender and landed a good job in a night club, but her minor had been in computer science because she enjoyed working with computers. Sam had taught her great many things about computers such as hacking, repairing, and whatnot, and she was far better than the average Joe. But while she was good with computers and a very capable hacker, Sam's talent with computers made her skills look like that of a first grader. There was no comparison.

"Let's try 'backdoor'," he murmured to himself, typing a few things in.

Curiosity getting the better of her, she asked, "What are you doing?"

"I'm trying," he began, typing something in and smiling at the result. "To hack my way into this thing. And I think I might have just gotten in. Now… what were you working on, Dad?"

Leaning over to see better, she read out loud, "_Laser Control._ Think that has something to do with that thing?" She turned to look briefly at the sci-fi laser gun.

"I have no idea," he replied. "Let's find out."

"Are you sure you know what you're doing?" she asked, looking back at the screen. Something didn't feel right and she didn't want him pressing too many buttons.

Sam was already accessing the file. "Nope."

"That's reassuring," Juno grumbled.

Acknowledging the command, the computer began beeping and there was the sound of something powering up. Nervously, Juno spared another glance at the laser, but it seemed perfectly fine. She figured it was just the computer and turned back to the screen, and read, "_Aperture Clear? Yes or no?_"

Looking up at her from the chair, Sam reasoned, "We've come this far. What's the worst that could happen?"

That was one of the worst things on the planet, but he had a point. Coming down here to just turn back seemed like a waste of effort.

With a determined but nervous nod, she said, "I guess we select 'yes'."

Giving her a half smile, he went back to the screen and tapped "yes".

Suddenly the powering up sound intensified, accompanied by new sound behind her.

Juno turned just in time to see a bright light coming from the laser gun before everything changed.

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_**Coffee keeps me awake to write, but reviews keep me motivated to write!**_


	2. Chapter 2

For a moment, everything went dark and Juno's ears rang, an intense yet brief headache shooting through her skull. It felt as though someone had put her head through a blender, and her stomach didn't feel much better. Pinching the bridge of her nose, she blinked a few times before keeping her green eyes open. That was when she noticed that things were… different.

The room she was in had been filthy, filled with clutter, machines of various purposes, and photos. It had been a mess, to say the least. But everything changed the moment Sam pressed "yes". The room had become very dark and practically empty, the once dusty table was now a shiny black, everything was flawlessly clean, and it was very quiet, the thrumming of the music coming from upstairs gone.

Frowning, she looked at Sam. "What the hell did you do?" she demanded.

Looking just perplexed as she did, Sam stammered, "Uh… I'm not sure."

Well, that was just what she wanted to hear. A few possible explanations ran through her head but she ruled all of them out, none fitting the situation. Maybe she was just dreaming, safe and sound in her bed in her apartment. Was it possible to dream about wondering if one was dreaming? She'd never dreamed about something like this before, though she'd had quite a few strange dreams before that made her question her sanity, never one with a laser, though.

Remembering the laser, she looked back to find that it was gone. It was almost like it had never been there at all.

A roar sounded in the distance and soon grew until the room shook lightly. Earthquakes were quite common in California, but this didn't feel like one.

Fear gripping her, she moved closer to Sam. "What's happening?"

"I don't know." Even as he spoke he was jumping from the chair. Grabbing her hand, he pulled her with him back the way they'd come. "Come on!"

As pissed as she was at him for saying "what's the worst that could happen" – the ultimate jinx – she still trusted him completely. Offering no resistance, she ran with him up the stairs, cursing her heels when they made her stumble. She really should have worn better boots, but she grabbed the first ones she came across – a pair with three inch heels.

Coming to the main floor, she tried and failed to hide her shock. The games were gone! What was once filled with games, dust, grime, and spiders was now nothing more than an empty room, shining and perfectly clean. It was impossible!

She must have slowed down because Sam tugged on her hand. "Come on! We just need to get to my bike, then we can find Alan and…" he trailed off the moment he burst through the doors, both of them coming to an abrupt halt. "And find out just what the hell is going on."

With wide eyes, they stared at what was once a filthy L.A street littered with graffiti. Now it was dark and clean, the buildings and sidewalk and road one solid dark grey color with glowing blue-white lines running everywhere in perfect symmetry, buildings made up of sharp curves. Were she not scared and shocked out of her mind, Juno would call it all beautiful and amazing. But for the moment it was just downright freaky and terrifying when she remembered the outside looking very different not ten minutes ago.

Shaking her head, she forced herself to push the fear and shock to the side, using a technique her brother Marcus taught her a while back so she could apply it to her childish fear of the dark. It was something he learned in the military and he said it often came in handy when being fired upon. Fear could only get in the way and get one killed, so he taught her how to suck it up and keep going, no matter how scared she got. It hadn't helped that he laughed at her while teaching her, finding her fear of the dark to be funny considering she was in her twenties, but he was a fairly decent teacher and his lesson had helped her get through the night if the electricity suddenly went out. Pushing it aside in this case, however, was easier said than done. This was nothing compared to a silly fear of the dark. This was real and it was dangerous, and she had no clue what was going on.

Looking around in disbelief, Sam murmured, his voice barely heard over a clap of thunder, "This isn't happening."

He took the words right out of her mouth. This had to be an illusion or something. But it all felt and looked so real, but unreal at the same time. She didn't know how to explain it.

A bright light snapped on and shown down on them, making them start.

Juno figured it was the police and she raised her hands a second after Sam did before turning her eyes upward, expecting to find a helicopter. What she found was flying, but it certainly was not a helicopter. The flying aircraft was large and in the shape of an upside-down U with neon orange lights running over it. The draft it caused blew her long hair about but she didn't even attempt to grab a hair band. All her attention was on the thing hovering above her.

"Oh, man," Sam exclaimed beside her. "This _is _happening!"

Clutching her hand, he made to run.

"Wait!" she shouted, yanking him back before he stepped off the ledge.

The street seemed to have sunk several feet below them, leaving them trapped on a small space as the craft lowered towards them until people came into view. Some had neon blue-white lights on their clothes and appeared to be trapped at their feet. Others – three she counted, one piloting the thing – wore strange suits and helmets with neon orange lights and held staffs. Two of the men in orange and black approached them, one taking hold of Sam's arm and the other grabbing her.

"Hey, watch it!" Juno snapped when the one holding her turned her sharply to look at her back, mimicking what the other was doing to Sam. "

With a voice that sounded almost electronic, the one holding Sam said, "These Programs have no discs. They are strays."

Without an explanation, she and Sam were practically dragged to the craft.

Sam struggled against his captor. "Wait, wait, we aren't programs!"

What the hell did these guys mean when they called her and Sam programs anyways?

Either they didn't hear Sam or they just didn't care – she suspected the latter – and they led them to the people with white-blue lights and roughly turned them around and pushed them back. Upon stepping on the white square, a transparent restraint came over their feet and Juno found that no matter how hard she tried to get free, no matter how hard she tried to move her feet, the thing wouldn't give and she couldn't move so much as an inch.

As the aircraft rose into the sky, Sam could only look around in awe. Though she had to admit that it was hard not to get caught up in the scenery, now was hardly the time to get captivated by it all.

"He actually did it," Sam murmured in awe, looking at the ground below before looking at her. "We're on the Grid."

She stared at him in disbelief. "The Grid? Sam, that's just… I mean, we can't be…" She couldn't finish the sentence as she looked out at the strange world before her. Kevin had told her about the Grid, described it to her in great detail. This was a near perfect description. Looking around, she knew it was true "My God…" she breathed in shock.

"Hey," Sam said to the man next to him, raising his voice to be heard over the roar. "Does the name Kevin Flynn mean anything to you?"

The man stared at him with little to no emotion and it sent a chill up Juno's spine. "Keep quiet if you want to live."

Looking at some of their other companions, she spotted one guy who was panicking. Over and over he chanted, "Not the games. Not the games. Not the games."

Whatever the games were, he was positively terrified of them.

Frowning in concern, she looked at the man next to her, and asked, "Is he okay?"

Catching a glimpse of his face from under his hood, Juno gasped. His face was half gone! His reply was a grunt-like growl.

Sam leaned toward her. "Friendly bunch."

"I don't like this, Sam," she said to him, swallowing.

"Me neither," he confessed and sent her a reassuring smile. It did little to help.

A time passed and the journey to wherever they were going felt endless. She desperately wanted to ask where they were going but doubted she would get an answer. Instead she kept her mouth shut, studying those around her and her surroundings. It really was beautiful in a creepy sort of way. It was just how Kevin described it, though he'd left out the neon orange lights part. She wondered briefly if that was something new. But for all she knew everything could be new. This was her and Sam's first time on the Grid. So far, she wasn't enjoying it. Kevin had promised that one day, after he took Sam to the Grid, he would take her. As she got older, the more she believed that it was just a story that he'd told them. But here she was, face to face with the truth that was the Grid, and all she wanted was to go home, back to her world, the "User world". This wasn't how she thought it would be. By the expression on her friend's face, it wasn't what he thought it would be like either.

When her hair continued to block her view, she took a black band from her wrist and pulled her long blond hair up into a ponytail.

Approaching a large dome, the aircraft came down for a smooth landing. More men – Programs – in orange and black were waiting for them when they landed and came to them as soon as it was safe.

The one without a staff walked up to the Program at the end on Juno's left. "Rectify," he said, his voice electronic. He stood in front of the next. "Rectify." Standing in front of the panicky one, he took a second to speak, looking him up and down. "Games." The frightened man instantly started pleading with him to change his mind.

Coming to stand in front of her after saying "rectify" to the man next to her, Juno asked, "Do I get a say in the matter?"

"Games."

She pursed her lips. "Guess not."

Beside her, Sam said to the man, smiling, "You probably get this a lot, but there's been a big mistake."

"Games."

Sam's smile disappeared and Juno couldn't help but snort in amusement. Her amusement left the moment she and Sam were seized, each grabbed by two guards and pulled forward. The man who had been panicking was begging for them to let him go and frantically struggling against them until he managed to shove them off. Seeing his chance, he started running.

"No!" the man screamed, running to the ledge. "Erase me!"

To Juno's horror, he jumped off the platform, killing himself.

Panicking, she tried to dig her feet into the smooth ground, struggling and fearing the worst. "Let me go!" she shouted. "Sam!"

"Get off her!" he yelled at them, struggling to get to her. "Don't you hurt her!"

Shoving her forward, she once again found herself trapped by the transparent restraints at her feet. Sam was in the same position but was farther away. Their eyes met briefly before she was abruptly lowered, traveling fast to some other level and away from Sam. The moment it stopped in a room, she felt like she could breathe again. She wasn't dead, that was a good thing. With how that man reacted, she thought for sure that she'd be heading to a certain death. But instead she was taken to some creepy dark room.

Noise and movement caught her attention and she saw something on each wall move. Straining to make out what they were, she saw white-blue lights that outlined what looked like bodies. Around the same time she realized that were women, all four of them were walking towards her in perfect synchronization wearing white and gray skintight bodysuits. Now _they _were the definition of creepy and she wanted to back away when they got right up in her face.

"Uh… hi?" she tried, looking at each of them.

In reply, they raised their hands and a blue laser appeared on their index fingers. The two in front of her knelt down and cut away her jeans, boots, and socks while the two behind her cut away her black leather jacket and dark green shirt.

"Hey! Those aren't cheap, you know!" Juno snapped, more than a little pissed that her favorite jacket was ruined.

At least she still had her bra and panties on, but that didn't stop her from crossing her arms over her chest to hide herself.

As the four women started walking away, some sort of material started forming over her body, turning into a black body suit with a low V-neck that showed a decent amount of cleavage. "What the hell?" she murmured, looking at her arms when the clothing finished materializing. She was also keenly aware that she'd been raised up a bit and looked down to find that she was wearing some odd looking high-heeled boots, no doubt giving her height of 5'3 a boost.

Returning with objects in their hands, the women pressed the items against her and they seemed to meld with her form and turn into something a lot like armor. A few seconds passed and soon she was outlined in glowing white neon lines.

"What are these?" Juno asked, pointing to the lines, curious.

Raising a fine brow in confusion, one of the women had the courtesy to reply, "It is your circuitry."

Though it was nice to have something to call the lines, it didn't really answer her question. Before she could ask for some clarification, one woman walked away towards something circular.

"Attention, Program," a female voice said, and Juno looked around briefly before realizing it was a computer speaking. "You will receive an identity disc. Everything you do or learn will be imprinted on this disc. If you lose your disc or fail to follow commands, you will be subject to immediate deresolution."

That didn't sound good.

Walking behind her, the woman stuck the disc onto her back and twisted it until it clicked. Everything suddenly brightened for an instant and she felt a tingly sensation run from her toes to her head and her brain felt fuzzy. Shaking her head to clear the fuzziness, she listened to the woman in front of her as she spoke. "Mirroring, complete. Disc activated and synchronized. Proceed to games."

Hearing some unspoken commanded, they all began back away to the pods they came from.

"What the hell is going on?" Juno demanded but received no answer.

Some of the lights turned off and her feet were freed from their prison. Feeling a small sense of freedom, she walked around, trying to get a sense of what exactly was going on. She did not like not knowing what was going on.

In front of her, a large door she hadn't seen slid open and the light that spilled out nearly blinded her. Shielding her eyes with her hand, she cautiously walked forward, her senses on alert. She might not be a soldier like everyone else in her family had been, but her brother made damn sure she was strong and could hold herself, teaching her a few fighting moves.

Marcus… how the hell was she going to explain this to him? He'd probably call her crazy and lock her up in a padded room for the rest of her life. Of course there was always the question of whether or not she was going to be going back to her world.

Walking deeper into the light, the door behind her closed and she found herself in a transparent room. Vaguely, she could make out the shapes of others and could see their colored circuits. One in particular caught her eyes on the opposite end.

"Sam!" she shouted, jumping up and down, waving her arms. He was facing the other way and clearly couldn't hear her but she still tried. After screaming a few times, he finally turned and saw her. "What's going on?" she shouted.

He frowned and pointed to his ear.

Understanding that he couldn't hear her, she gestured to the suit she was wearing and gave him her best "what the hell is going on" expression.

Giving her a pitiful look, he only shrugged as they were all taken upwards and the roar of a crowd filled her ears before she saw hundreds of people, Programs, in a stadium-like setting, standing and cheering when they came into view.

The computerized voice appeared again and said, "All combatants, prepare for disc wars."

"disc wars?" Juno though out loud. That sounded about as good as deresolution did.

Everything shifted and she looked back as her cubical lowered and Sam's rose, keeping them far apart. Coming to a stop at a transparent platform, she stepped out of her cubical and saw a man standing on the far end with his helmet on and his disc in his hand. Swallowing her fear, she walked closer and pulled the disc from her back, surprised when a helmet formed on her head.

"Platform six," the computer began. "Combatants seven and thirteen. Disc wars."

Seeing the man kneel in a threatening crouch, Juno took a step back. "Look, can we talk about this?" She hardly got the words out when the man's disc came flying at her head. Acting on instinct, she dropped to the ground, landing flat on her chest. "Okay," she groaned, rising to her knees. "No talking. Got it."

Not wanting to find out what would happen if that disc hit her, she jumped to her feet and threw hers at him.

_Just like Frisbee_, she thought as she watched the disc fly through the air, missing its target, ricocheting off the wall and coming back to her waiting hands. Before she could take a breath she dodged the man's disc again, diving out of the way. _A very dangerous game of Frisbee_.

They repeated the process for a moment or two and all the while Juno studied how her opponent fought. Not once did he kneel to throw his disc or jump to avoid some of her lower throws and he was slower when things came at his left.

His vulnerable spot.

A light bulb went off in her head and she started running full speed towards her opponent. Just as she predicted, he threw his disc at her waist. This time, however, she dropped to her knees and bent backwards until her back touched the backs of her legs and slid forward a few feet to let the disc fly safely over her before rising a few inches and hurling her disc at his left side. It made contact and sliced cleaning through him. But there was no blood. The Program shattered into what looked like glass. It made the knowledge of her taking his life a little easier to swallow.

It was over, and she fell backward and stretching her legs out in front of her, and closed her eyes for a moment. But then she felt the platform jerk and snapped them open, rising to a sitting position. The computer announced round two and she wanted to cry. Looking above her, she saw Sam on his second round already and hoped to God he had a plan because she didn't.

When her next opponent came into view looking far more deadly, she gulped but held her ground.

This round was much harder and she'd resorted to rolling and dropping to the ground just to stay out of the disc's way. He blocked and dodged every single attack and didn't seem to be tiring at all. Then he started running at her and she knew that he meant business. Getting into a defensive position, she prepared to attack him up close but was stopped short.

A stray disc shattered the top portion of the cage, bounced back to its owner, then back down again directly under the piece of glass her opponent was standing on. He didn't have time to react and was quickly falling before he slammed to the ground, shattering into millions of pieces.

Looking up, a grin came to her face. "What took you so long?"

"I got held up," Sam replied, reaching down as far as he could without falling in. "Grab my hand!"

Spotting something that had been between her and her opponent, recognizing it as something to boost ones jump, she ran to it and towards Sam, landing on it with a firm jump and was boost high into the air, grabbing Sam's waiting hand.

"Got you!" Holding on tightly, he pulled her up. "Let's get out of here."

Following him to the end of top of the tube, she waited for him to give the okay before jumping, ignoring the computer when he accused them of violating the rules. The moment Sam yelled "jump", she jumped and smacked into another tube with him before sliding down it and landing in another, this one much larger. At least she managed to land on her feet while Sam sort of rolled. A musical sound played for a second and she rushed to her friend's side.

"Any other bright ideas?" she questioned. They'd made it out of their tubes and landed in another. From the sound of that music, they'd been better off where they were.

"Cut me some slack here," he snapped, rising to his feet and facing her, blue eyes seeking her green ones. "Let's see you come up with a plan!"

But her eyes weren't on him.

Her green eyes were locked on the Program with orange circuitry far behind him. Unlike all the others in orange, he didn't have much of it. Somehow, that made him look much more dangerous, especially combined with his slow, predatory approach. Everything about him screamed killer, and she gulped.

"Initiate final round," the computer commanded. "Combatants three and seven versus Rinzler." The crowd immediately began cheering Rinzler's name. Juno took that as a sign that he rarely, if ever, lost.

By now, Sam had turned to face their opponent and extended one arm in front of her protectively. She would have none of that and batted his arm away, removing her disc and gripping it tightly in front of her.

Sam groaned. "Why can't you be the kind of girl to stay back and let guys fight?"

"Blame my brother," she replied, eyes remaining on the Program named Rinzler. Was it just her or was he growling? It almost sounded like he was purring, actually.

Reaching back, Rinzler pulled his disc from his back, grasping it with both hands and pulling apart, revealing two discs, and then crouched in an attack position. Juno could almost imagine the smug look on his face behind his helmet. Of course it would be easier if she knew what he looked like.

Beside her, Sam was trying to pull his disc apart to no avail. "Come on. Is that even legal?"

"Smooth," she muttered.

With an elaborate spin and twist that seemed to defy gravity, Rinzler sent one disc flying at her and the other at Sam, forcing them to split up. Effortlessly, the Program caught the discs when they came back to him. Sam threw his disc at him but Rinzler jumped over it, spinning with grace that he didn't seem capable of and even managed to dodge hers when it came at him, ducking low beneath it.

Looking over at her, Sam asked, "Why do I get the feeling we just got dumped on?"

"Maybe because we did," she replied just as a beeping noise sounded while Sam tried egging Rinzler on.

To Juno's surprise, Rinzler ran away from them.

Frowning, she had just enough time to open her mouth in an attempt to question his actions before gravity reversed and she and Sam were slammed up into the ceiling.

Groaning, knowing she'd have some serious bruises, Juno jumped to her feet just as Rinzler advanced on them. She skirted around him to attack him from behind before Sam busted the glass beneath him. But Rinzler was smart and balanced both feet on the edges of the glass, staring from Sam to Juno before simultaneously fighting them both, blocking all their blows effortlessly. He managed to cut Sam's arm once before throwing one of his discs back toward the wall, probably hoping to catch her or Sam when it ricocheted.

Not wanting to miss the opportunity, Juno attacked harder and missed the front of his helmet with her disc by an inch before punching him hard in the helmet. Now _that _was a mistake! Her left hand erupted in pain, the force of her blow breaking the skin on her knuckles. With her vulnerable, Rinzler used his free hand to return the favor and punched her in the face. She felt her lower lip split with the force of the punch and tasted blood, bringing her hand up out of instinct to hold the wound.

The beeping sounded again and though they both knew it was coming they still landed on the ground hard when the gravity went back to normal.

Her head in agony, she caught a flash of orange and looked just in time to see Rinzler land on Sam, skidding them a few feet away from her, his discs at his neck.

"No!" she yelled, jumping to her feet and running into Rinzler with as much strength and speed that she could muster.

She caught him by surprise and he tumbled over, losing one of his discs and causing her to land on top of him where she straddled his waist. She appeared to have gained the upper hand, but he proved otherwise when he used his free hand to shove her off him and turn the tables, yanking her under him and holding his disc at her neck. The growl that came from him was louder and she guessed it got louder when he became angry. In the background, she could hear Sam yelling at him to get away from her but she knew that he wouldn't get to her in time. Defiantly, she stared up at Rinzler, holding his eyes despite the fact that she couldn't see him and waited for him to end it.

When he didn't killer, she actually grew mad. "What the hell are you waiting for?" she hissed. Was this some kind of torture?

Shocking her into silence, he reached out with his free hand and traced her lower lip with his finger, making her wince. Pulling his hand away, he studied the blood on his finger.

"User…" Rinzler said it so quietly that she almost didn't hear him.

And suddenly the disc was away from her neck and he was pulling her to her feet like he hadn't been about to behead her.

Gripping her arm tightly and retrieving his other disc, he returned them to his back as he stalked over to Sam and looked at his arm. Upon seeing the blood, he pulled Sam to his feet too. The crowd began booing but Rinzler paid no attention to them and turned her and Sam to face a large orange circuited viewing box above.

On the intercom, a male voice said, "Identify yourselves, Programs."

"We aren't Programs," Sam shouted.

Another voice, one that held more authority, ordered, "Identify."

Glancing at Juno, Sam said, "My name is Sam Flynn." Abruptly the crowd fell silent and he hesitated before adding, "And this is Juno Strider."

For a long time, there was nothing but silence.

Spitting out the blood in her mouth, Juno muttered, "You certainly know how to shut up a crowd."

…

_**Coffee keeps me awake to write, but reviews keep me motivated to write!**_


	3. Chapter 3

Rinzler could hardly believe it.

The son of Flynn was on the Grid.

Part of him, the corrupted part, wanted to end the User's life, but the other half, the half that remained Tron, wanted to protect both Sam Flynn and his friend, Juno Strider. That half was shoved to the side, taken over by the identity of Rinzler that had seized him when Clu repurposed him so many cycles ago, making him his personal enforcer. He could voice his thoughts, shout at Clu that what he was doing to the Programs in the Grid was cruel and evil, could scream his protest, but ultimately he do much of anything else, his original programming poisoned by Rinzler. If Clu ordered him to do something, he did it without question. It was for that reason that he so rarely bothered to speak. What was the point? There was no one to speak with and nothing he said would change things.

Leading the two Users to the Recognizer when it landed near the opened end of the platform, Rinzler went over the battle in his head, thinking over what had transpired. It was the first time someone had ever gotten the jump on him like that. Generally, Programs would run if the opportunity presented itself, desperate to save themselves, but a few factions who sought to take Clu down sent Programs to attack him on occasion, but all who attacked him had been derezzed. This User, Juno, ran at him and pushed him away from the son of Flynn. Surely she knew that doing so would have meant she'd be derezzed, or killed since she was a User. If he hadn't noticed the blood on her lips he would have separated her head from her body without hesitation. But still she attempted to save the other User, eying him defiantly, almost daring him to kill her and growing angry when he didn't.

She was strange, even for a User.

Glancing at her under the privacy of his helmet, he was struck by just how small she was. Analyzing her height, he came to the conclusion that she was 5'3, made four inches taller by the heels of her boots. Most female Programs were over 5'6, their heels adding anywhere from four to six inches to their height. And her eye… he stared at her eyes for a little longer than necessary before realizing she was a User. Never had he seen anyone with green eyes before seeing as Programs typically only had blue or grey eyes with the exception of very few. It was such a strange, interesting color.

The woman at his side tensed, feeling his eyes on her, and slowly shifted those green eyes to him. He was facing forward, but he was watching her out of the corner of his eye. She must have somehow sensed this because she frowned, a pink hue coming to her cheeks, and looked away.

Her reaction was fascinating. Blushing, he believed it was called. Flynn had described blushing once when talking to him about what Users were like. However, Flynn often failed to tell him why Users had physical reactions to things – why a User blushed, paled, or cried was a mystery to him – and this was the first time he'd seen a User blush. He'd seen Flynn pale on occasion, but Juno was the first User he'd ever seen blush, and he'd never seen anyone cry before.

Ensuring that they were secured in the foot restraints, he stepped to the side a bit as the craft flew upwards, taking them to Clu's command ship that occasionally doubled as a viewing box.

"This is the last time I get up in the middle of the night to help you with anything!" Juno hissed to Sam.

"How was I supposed to know we get taken into the Grid?"

Tossing him a glare, she snapped, "There was a damn laser gun in that room! If that doesn't scream danger I don't know what does."

"Then I guess everyone is in danger on Halloween and movie sets, huh? Chris, Juno, how was I supposed to know this would happen?"

"You shouldn't have said _what's the worst that can happen_!" she said, voice rising a fraction. "That's asking for something bad to happen!"

"I'll tell you what," Sam started, frustrated and ticked off, "Next time, you make the decisions."

"If there even is a next time," Juno mumbled quietly, not meaning for him to hear.

He did hear her, and though the irritation at being blamed for their situation was still there, his tone held no bite when he said, "We're getting out of this. I promise."

A sad smile tugged at her lips. "Don't make promises you can't keep."

Rinzler couldn't help but notice that Sam was similar to his father in the sense that he always thought that this would be all right, one way or the other, even when things were grim. It was both a good trait and a flaw. Things weren't always all right, Rinzler was proof of that. Juno seemed to realize this by telling Sam not to make promises about such things.

"Hey," Juno said, but was met with silence.

Rinzler wondered why Sam was not answering.

"Rinzler," she tried again.

No wonder Sam wasn't answering. She was talking to _him_, not her User friend.

His only response was a low growl. Why was she talking to him?

Unsure whether he heard her or not, she asked, "That is your name, right?" When he didn't reply, she continued. "Well, I just wanted to say thank you," she said, and he had to fight hard no to turn his head toward her and stare. She was thanking him? "For not killing us, I mean," she clarified in case he was wondering why.

That was a strange thing to be thanked for. He'd never been thanked for not killing someone before.

Sam groaned. "Only you would thank a killer for something as crazy as not killing us."

She only shrugged. "I'd rather stay on a killer's good side than."

"Assuming he has one," he muttered, eying Rinzler.

Though he knew he should keep his mind focused, Rinzler's thoughts lingered on the thanks Juno gave him longer than needed. He'd split her lip when he hit her, attempted to end her, and she still thanked him for not killing them. He had to wonder if all User's were like her. That was doubtful. From what he gathered from Flynn, each User was unique. Some were selfish, some were selfless. Some were kind, and some were evil. The only thing they all had in common was imperfection. No User was perfect, and the Users valued that imperfection. It was what made them all unique. That took a while for Rinzler to digest when first meeting Flynn back when he was Tron. He'd seen them as gods, perfect beings. Flynn proved him wrong. But sometimes, imperfection was better than perfection.

Choosing to ignore her, not daring to speak in the presence of others, he waited for the Recognizer to get to Clu, eager to hand the female User over to him. Something about her was different. She was both fascinating and unnerving. The sooner he got rid of her the better.

Slowing to a stop at the back of the command ship, Rinzler took Juno by the arm and pulled her out of the restraints while another guard grabbed Sam. Juno struggled briefly against Rinzler but then relaxed, reluctantly allowing him to pull her along. Sam, on the other hand, continued to struggle the whole way. The female accepted the fact that struggling was futile. No matter how hard they struggled, they were not escaping. The sooner Sam learned that, the easier things would be. Even though Juno was not fighting, though, she looked tense and ready to run if she found an opening where she could get away.

For her sake, he hoped she didn't make a move against them.

The lift took them to Clu, and Sam was pushed forward roughly by the guard holding him. Rinzler, however, decided against being rough with Juno. She didn't struggle against him so he would not manhandle her too much. There was no reason to be rough. That, he supposed, was a trait even Clu couldn't get rid of. Rinzler would not harm a User for no reason. Now, if he was ordered to do so… that was a different story, one he didn't like thinking about.

The doors slid open and the Users were ushered inside and the guard let go of Sam while Rinzler released Juno. As soon as he let go of her, she went straight to Sam's side, her hand affectionately find his. The son of Flynn held her hand tightly, offering comfort in the act.

Watching them, Rinzler had to wonder if the two Users were involved.

"Freaks," Sam muttered, and hissed when Juno kicked his shin. "Ow! What was that for?"

"I don't think calling them freaks will help us much," she snapped quietly. "Shut up."

A smirk tugged at Rinzler's lips. Involved or not, the female wasn't afraid to put the son of Flynn in his place.

Sighing, Sam looked to Clu. "Where are we?" he asked despite Juno's order for him to shut up.

Clu did not answer. The leader merely turned around and started walking toward the Users as Rinzler stayed behind them in case they tried to run.

Still wanting an answer, Sam asked, "Are we on the Grid?"

"Who are you?" Juno demanded.

At this, Clu's helmet retracted and revealed the face of Kevin Flynn, their creator. Both Users stared in shock. Rinzler didn't have to see their faces to know that their eyes were wide with disbelief.

"Dad?" Sam stammered.

Clu grinned. "Sam." Opening his arms, he strolled towards Flynn's son and Juno. "Look at you, man. Look at the size of you." Placing his hands on the Users shoulders, he asked, "How did you get in here?"

"I got your message," Sam breathed, still processing it all. If only he knew that this was not his father.

"Oh. So it's just you?" Stepping back and circling around them, he stopped behind Juno, running a finger through the long blond hair that was pulled up, making her jump a bit in surprise. "And your friend here?"

Frowning, Juno looked at Clu and asked, "Don't you remember me, Mr. Flynn? I… I came to the arcade with you and Sam all the time. You were like a father to me…"

"Ah, yes, Juno. I remember you," Clu stated with a nod and a smile as he circled around them. "Just the two of you." He chuckled.

Rinzler stared at Clu for a moment. He detected no hint of deceit when his leader said he remembered her. Searching his memory, he recalled the times Flynn spoke of Sam as well as a little girl named Juno. No doubt he spoke of the girl to Clu as well. Apparently, Flynn was a long time friend of Robert and Amanda Strider, Juno's parents. After her father died when she was one, Flynn stepped in to help Amanda with raising the girl and her older brother. He spoke of her almost as much as he did Sam. The girl was a daughter to him.

Standing in front of the Users, Clu gestured to the room and his clothing, smiling. "Isn't this something?"

Sam continued to stare at him. Ignoring his question, he said, "You look the same."

Growing serious, Clu said, "A lot's happened, Sam. More than you or your friend can imagine." Turning his eyes to Rinzler, he ordered, "Their discs."

Without question, he removed both their discs and brought them over to Clu with a slight bow.

Taking Sam's first, he watched as memories as seen through Sam's eyes came into view. Giving a slight nod, he then took Juno's. After a moment, the images disappeared. "Got it." Waving the two discs around, Clu walked back to Sam and Juno. "Hmm, I didn't expect much from Juno, but I expected more from you, Sam," he said with a sigh, tossing the discs to the enforcer.

Juno visibly flinched and Rinzler's eyes flicked over to her after her returned the discs to their backs. A sad expression had blanketed her face and she pressed herself closer to Sam for what he assumed was comfort.

"You got trapped in here," she stated, looking at Clu.

He nodded. "Yes, that's right."

Sam looked behind him at the one he assumed was his father. "And you're in charge."

"Right again. The two of you are on a role."

Breathing out a tired laugh, Sam asked, "So, can we just go home now?"

With his back to them, Clu replied, "Not in the cards. Not for you two."

Jaw tensing, he said in a low tone, "That's a hell of a way to treat your son. To treat Juno."

"Oh, that…" Clu turned to them, a vindictive smile on his face. Stepping forward until he was arm's length away from Sam, he said, "I'm not your father, Sam. But I'm very, very happy to see you." Smile widening, Clu turned and walked back to the glass.

Comprehension dawned on Sam and he could only stare at the man before him for a long moment. "Clu?"

Juno gaped. "Oh, God."

Ignoring both of them, Clu said to the guards, "Escort Sam to the arena. Rinzler, see to it that Juno gets that lip cleaned up before you escort her there to join him. I want her looking pretty for the crowd."

Despite the surprise that he felt for such a petty order, Rinzler nodded and took Juno's arm, leading her to the lift while the other guards fought with Sam as he struggled.

"Where is he?" Sam demanded, trying with all his might to get to Clu. "What did you do to him?"

"That same thing I'm going to do to the two of you," Clu replied, saturated with hate. "Users."

* * *

Too much was happening and it was so hard to take it all in. Juno and Sam were on the Grid, held captive by a crazy Program known as Clu, the Program designed by Kevin. Clu was supposed to help him build the perfect system, but now he was destroying it and Kevin was nowhere in sight. Now she was being tended to by one of those freaky chicks who had put her in the armor, the Program being a little to rough with cleaning the wound, and she was being watched by Rinzler in away that may her feel like a small animal about to become some predator's lunch.

More than a little annoyed with his constant silent staring, she asked, "Why don't you talk?"

He gave no reply.

"I heard you call me a User during the disc wars when you saw the blood on my lip. Don't pretend that you can't."

Still, there was no reply, no reaction at all.

The woman roughly dabbed at her lip, sending a sharp pain through her lip, and Juno had enough and smacked her hand away, taking the fabric away from her. "I'll handle it from here. Thanks," she snapped, gingerly patting the wound. It was only bleeding a little and she figured it would stop soon.

Not appearing to be hurt by her words in the slightest, the woman walked out of the room, leaving Juno alone with Rinzler. To say it was awkward was an understatement and she shifted nervously to her other foot. It wouldn't be so bad if he just stopped staring at her, of if he would say something to let her know that he wasn't a statue. Of course, the silence did give her the chance to think without interruption. Oddly enough, her thoughts traveled to the Program keeping watch on her.

He'd been as rough and as deadly as one could be during their fight in the disc war, and there had been no mistaking the fact that he meant to kill both her and Sam prior to seeing the blood on her lip. Everything about his armor, shape, and stance screamed that he was a dangerous predator and capable fighter. But when he was taking her and Sam to Clu, she would describe his treatment of her as oddly gentle. His grip on her arm had been firm enough to remind her that he was in control and could take her down in an instant, but loose enough not to cause her any discomfort. The guards holding Sam had been rough while he struggled, so she knew that Rinzler could have gotten away with being rough. Still, he didn't cause her any discomfort or harm and thus she hadn't struggled. And the way he'd said "User"… she'd heard the faint detection of shock, hope, even fear in his voice.

He was like a walking contradiction.

Sighing, she glanced at him then turned her eyes to the cloth in her hand, bored and uneasy.

Unable to take the silence any longer, she started talking, not caring if he chose to speak or not. "I wasn't supposed to be here. Neither was Sam. That message was sent to Alan Bradley, a long time friend of both Sam and myself. He was supposed to come here, not us," she sighed, shaking her head. "But he gave the keys to the arcade Sam and he so came instead. Hell, the only reason I'm here is because he was worried about what he was going to find at the arcade." Looking up at Rinzler, she took note that he was still staring at her and not moving. The only change was that he wasn't growling. Swallowing, not sure if that was a good sign or not, she continued, "Even after he told me about the page, I really didn't want to go. Not only because he'd woken me up, but I guess because I was worried about what would be there too in some way. But he's been my friend for years, you know? We grew up together. I had to go." A faint blush came to her cheeks and she looked away, dabbing at her lip. "Sorry. I don't know why I'm telling you this. I've been told I talk too much."

Feeling like an idiot for rambling to someone clearly not interested in chatting, she finished wiping away the blood before tossing the cloth aside. Without needing to be told that she was done, Rinzler stepped forward and took her arm, taking her out of the room and towards the arena in silence.

What was going to take place in the arena was still a mystery to her, one that she was sure was nothing good. They stopped at the large doorway where a few guards waited to escort her, and she unconsciously inched closer to Rinzler, not wanting to go out there.

Doubting she would receive an answer, she asked, "What exactly is going to happen?"

He said nothing.

Rolling her eyes, she mumbled, "And to think, I was once attracted to the strong, silent types."

Accepting that she was just going to have to find out the hard way, she took a few deep breaths, trying to gather the courage she didn't feel as the roar of the crowed filled her ears. The guards approached, tired of waiting, but her legs would not move.

"Light-cycles," a raspy electronic voice said beside her.

Nearly jumping out of her skin, she turned her wide green eyes to Rinzler. "Light-cycles?" she repeated, surprised that he'd actually spoken.

The Program nodded. "You and the son of Flynn will duel Clu and members of his Black Guard with the aid of other Programs."

"A fight to the death," she summarized.

Again, he nodded.

Raising his hand to stop the approach of the guards, he turned toward her and she could feel his eyes, hidden by the helmet, looking into hers. "Avoid the light-ribbons. They will cause you to crash and derez. Or die, in yours and the son of Flynn's case."

Nodding, she looked towards the arena briefly before looking back at Rinzler. "Thank you," she said softly, giving him a small but sincere smile.

Taking a deep breath, she finally stepped out into the arena and was led to Sam with new found confidence.

* * *

Why in the name of the Creator did he just tell her all that?

Rinzler stayed planted to the floor, watching as Juno made her way to Sam. He hadn't intended on speaking to her at all. He would watch her while she got the blood cleaned up and then take her up to the arena. After that, he would be rid of her for good. But then she started talking…

Surprised at first, he'd soon found himself listening intently to what she had to say. It was completely one-sided and she obviously didn't expect him to put in a comment, but she still talked, sharing something he sensed was rather personal with him, probably only because she assumed he wasn't even listening. The moment she ceased talking he became disappointed. Her soft voice was a pleasant sound, one he didn't mind hearing, and wanted to hear again.

When they drew closer to the arena, he couldn't stop himself from answering her when she asked what was going to happen. It seemed like the right thing to do, and Clu had not ordered him not to tell Juno what was going to happen.

Tearing his eyes away from Juno's retreating form, Rinzler walked back down the steps to the exit with a low growl.

* * *

_**Coffee keeps me awake to write, but reviews keep me motivated to write!**_


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: _Extended chapter._**

* * *

"Just in time," Sam commented the moment Juno was beside him. "You okay?"

Giving him a nod, she said, "Yeah, but we've got a problem."

"You just noticing that?"

"I'm serious." Glancing at Jarvis, she lowered her voice to a whisper. "We're going to be fighting Clu and some others on light-cycles. Winner walks away with a pulse."

Sam stared at her. "Light-cycles? How do you know this? Who told you?"

"What is this, twenty questions? It doesn't matter who told me. What does matter is the fact that we're screwed." Though she was thankful for Rinzler's information, she doubted Sam would be as gracious. She was still shocked that he'd spoken to her at all. He had no reason to tell her about the duel, but still he did.

Looking around the arena, Sam finally gave her a nod. "Any idea about how the light-cycles function?"

She bit her lip. "That I don't know."

"Great," he grumbled but quickly shut up when Jarvis grinned and spoke to the crowd.

"Greetings, Programs! Oh, what an occasion we have here before us. Because your rumors are true. We do indeed have in our midst _two _Users!" Jarvis announced, dramatically pointing to her and Sam.

The crowd started booing and Juno whispered, "Tough crowd."

Continuing, Jarvis asked, "So, what to do? What do these Users deserve?" Turning to Sam and Juno, he cast them a sickening smile. "Might I suggest perhaps the challenge of the Grid?" He allowed the crowd to cheer for a moment. "And who best to battle these opponents? Perhaps one who has some experience in these matters?" A set of orange circuited stairs appeared underneath a hovering craft and the crowd roared as Clu, dressed in a combat suit, stepped onto the arena. "Oh, yes, indeed, Programs. Your liberator! Your luminary! Your leader and maker! The one who vanquished the tyranny of the User those many cycles before!"

Coming up to stand close to Sam, Clu whispered, "I've been waiting a long time for this."

Sam tensed and Juno grabbed his arm to keep him from lunging at Clu. That wouldn't do either of them any good.

Holding his ground, Sam bit out, "You wanna play? We'll play." Oh, this was not going to end well.

Finishing his speech, Jarvis shouted, "Clu!"

Grinning from ear to ear, Jarvis leaned over to speak to Clu privately and the smile fell from his face, indicating that whatever he'd been expecting wasn't what Clu said. Gulping, the Program offered the leader something in the metal box he was holding then turned to Sam and Juno, making the same offering at a distance.

Reaching inside, Juno removed a baton that was about a foot long. She frowned. Rinzler said they would be fighting on light-cycles. It suddenly occurred to her that he may have been lying to her to mess with her head. Sparing a glance around the arena, Juno had to wonder if Rinzler was watching.

Picking up his baton, Sam stared at it before wielding it like a sword. "What's this? What do we do with these?"

Jarvis looked at Sam as though he were an idiot, mimicking Juno's expression. "I'll give you a hint. Not that."

She closed her eyes, a wave of embarrassment washing over her. "Sam, I don't think the Force is with you so stop holding that thing like a damn lightsaber."

Narrowing his eyes at her, he lowered his hands to his sides.

Turning his back on them, Clu walked away, putting some distance between them as the computer announced, "The Grid is live." There was a humming sound behind them and both Sam and Juno turned to find four Programs standing behind them with batons. "Initiate light-cycle battle."

Okay, so Rinzler hadn't been lying to her.

Turning back to Clu, her jaw dropped.

Running, Clu jumped into the air, holding the baton in front of him. In a matter of seconds, if that, the baton transformed in to a motorcycle-like vehicle that could only be the light-cycle. Flanking him were four guards on their own light-cycles. Theirs, however, had reddish orange circuitry while Clu's was yellow. Juno barely had enough to jump out of the way when they sped passed her and the others.

Throwing a disgusted glare their way, one Program snapped, "You've got no chance, Users." Following two other Programs, he activated his blue light-cycle.

Only one Program stayed behind. "Their bikes are faster than ours. Use the levels," he advised, rushing off to join the others.

For a moment, they just stared at them before Sam broke the silence with a wry smile. "Now this I can do." Smiling down at her, he asked, "You still remember how to ride a motorcycle?"

Despite their situation, she smiled faintly. "How could I forget?"

Grinning, they took off together, running in the direction their buddies had gone with the intent on catching up to them.

Bringing the baton in front of her, she jumped as high as she could into the air, pressing the center button. The light-cycle formed beneath her, fitting to her perfectly to her form and laced with the same shade of white circuitry as her suit. The power of the machine gave her a great sense of respect for it and, though she was more into cars, this was something she could definitely get used to.

Landing on the ground beside Sam, they sped off to start the duel.

Shouting to be heard over the roar of the engine, she called to him, "Watch out for the light-ribbons."

"What the hell is a light-ribbon?"

"I don't know. Rin…" she hesitated, the word Rinzler on the tip of her tongue. "My friend just told me not to… Oh shit!" With seconds to spare, she made a hard right to avoid a strip of orange light.

So that was a light-ribbon. Good name considering it looked somewhat like a ribbon. Looking at the controls in front of her, she flicked on her own light-ribbon and glanced back to see the ray of white and spotted Sam's own white ribbon.

Up ahead of her, one of her teammates wasn't so fortunate when it came to getting out of the way of an orange ribbon. Crashing into it at full speed, he screamed as he was vaulted off his bike, falling to the ground in millions of pieces. Then the guard who killed him turned his attention to her and sped in her direction.

Muttering an oath, she dropped to the lower level, the guard right on her ass and coming up beside her in seconds. She slammed her bike against his, attempting to knock him off balance. But the guard only wobbled a bit and righted himself, reaching back for his disc.

"So that's how it is, huh?" she questioned under her breath.

Since there were obviously no limits on how to take an opponent out, she shifted on her light-cycle, aiming a solid kick at the Program's side before he could get his disk. Taken off guard and slowing slightly, Juno saw her opening and sped in front of him, his scream ringing in her ears when he drove right into her light-ribbon. Letting out the breath she'd been holding, she went in search of Sam. This wasn't a game to play alone.

It wasn't hard to find him. He was the only other with white circuitry.

Coming up next to him, he looked at her with a smirk. "Having fun yet?"

"Oh, yeah. This is loads of fun," she replied, rolling her eyes. "We can't do this by ourselves."

"I agree." Looking around, he saw their only remaining teammate and both sped towards him. "Hey!" he shouted, getting the Program's attention. "We gotta work together. It's the only way."

Considering this, the Program looked at the upper lever where one of the guards was following them. Hesitating only a moment, he looked at them and gave a curt nod before pulling away.

Sam then looked at Juno. "June…"

She frowned. He only called her that when he was about to ask her to do something she really was not going to like. "Let me guess. I'm the bait."

"Good luck!" he said, speeding away from her.

"Asshole," she mumbled, glancing up at the guard who had her in his sights. "Yeah, that's it!" she shouted at him. "You want me? You're going to have to catch me!"

Rising to the challenge, he dropped to her level.

Weaving through tunnels, she continued to taunt him, egging him on to the point where she was clearly pissing him off. Sparing a glance behind her, she saw Sam approaching from behind the guard on the opposite side and he gave her a nod. Understanding his silent command, she cut back on the speed, the guard passing her in a flash. He turned back to stare at her while at the same time Sam came up on the other side.

"Boo!"

The guard snapped his head around to look at Sam just as he turned away.

Before he could catch on, he slammed into their friend's blue light-ribbon.

"Yeah!" Juno cheered, coming up beside Sam and the Program who were also cheering.

"Now that's what I'm talking about!" Sam grinned then spotted a guard above him. "Another costumer! Let's go!"

Sam and their friend handled this one and Juno stayed back a ways to watch their backs, keeping an eye out for Clu who had disappeared. She doubted that he'd chickened out. No, he was up to something.

"Juno, watch out!" Sam shouted and she looked ahead, swerving at the last minute to avoid running over their teammate who had crashed into the opponent's light-cycle.

She was about to turn back to go get him, unable to leave him behind, when she saw Sam grab the Program's baton from the ground and speed towards him. Just a little closer…

A flash of yellow appeared out of nowhere and Clu ran over their friend, smashing him to pieces before the Program had a chance to try to save himself. Her stomach churned. Talk about the coward's way of killing. Their friend hadn't even been on his damn light-cycle!

Grieving their friend would have to wait, however, because Sam was trying to add himself to the list of casualties.

Both Sam and Clu were on a collision course, neither slowing nor turning away, so she sped towards them to help. Now was not the time to play chicken! Evidently Clu had no intention of playing Sam's game and he grabbed his disc from his back. Juno's heart nearly stopped when she saw her friend go flying off his now destroyed light-cycle. Racing towards him, a ways behind Clue she prayed to God that the machine would go faster, seeing him pull out his own disc as Clu closed in.

No, she couldn't lose her best friend!

Closing in on Clu, she got ready to get out her disk and throw it at him.

A loud rumbled demanded everyone's attention and a vehicle of some sort burst through the side of the arena, speeding passed Sam, leaving a long light-ribbon in its wake. Seeing it too late, Clu yelled and crashed into it, going flying several feet before crashing to the ground in one piece.

Unfortunately because she was racing behind him, Juno ran into the same problem and was unable to cut back on the speed or swerve in time to avoid the ribbon. Her bike crashed into it and she was hurled into the air. Because she had been going slower than Clu, she landed closer to Sam than he did, crashing to the ground on her side left side with intense pain. Dazed and in agony, she was all right for the most part, but was certain she'd be black and blue for a long time.

Running to her side, Sam helped her up, pulling her into a tight hug that caused her to yelp in pain. "Sorry," he apologized, altering his tight grip to something more gentle.

"Illegal combatant on the Grid," the computer said, and Juno wanted nothing more than to take the computer that was talking apart.

The vehicle that had interrupted the duel pulled up between the two and Clu. "Get in," the person inside said, voice made electronic by the helmet.

"Illegal combatant on the Grid," the computer repeated.

Juno shared a wary expression with Sam before looking back at the person in the vehicle.

In no mood to waste time, the person shouted, "Get in!"

"We don't have much of a choice, Juno," Sam said, taking her hand and pulling her towards the vehicle, her limp slowing them down.

Just as Sam climbed into the passenger's seat and motioned for her to sit on his lap, the computer said, "System failure. Release Rinzler."

From somewhere in the arena, the young woman heard the roar of light-cycle engines. After seeing how well Rinzler could fight with a disk, seeing that he was evidently Clu's weapon, she seriously doubted they would be able to get away without a distraction.

Biting her lower lip, she looked from Sam towards the sound of the light-cycles, debating on what to do. It wasn't too hard to make a decision. Sam needed answers more than she needed to survive or stay in one piece. He needed to find his father. Her eyes darted to the baton he'd hooked to his right leg after picking it up before their pall was killed. This wasn't going to end well, but she'd made up her mind and glanced into Sam's blue eyes.

Immediately, he knew what she was about to do and was to slow to stop her from grabbing the spare baton from his leg, his attempt to grab her falling short by a few inches when she jumped back, the action making her hiss in pain. "No! Juno, what are you doing?" he demanded, ready to jump out of the vehicle and go after her.

"Making sure you get out of here in one piece. I'll hold off Clu's pit bulls." Looking to the Program helping them – a woman, she noticed – she shouted, "Get him out of here!"

The woman watched her, looked at Sam, then gave her a nod.

"No!" he shouted, attempting to jump out of the vehicle, but the woman was already driving away.

Fighting back tears, Juno ran, doing her best to ignore the pain in her left leg, and jumped, activating the light-cycle and following behind the vehicle.

Out of nowhere, three guards on light-cycles appeared in front of her from the lower level and she swerved to avoid their ribbons. No, it wasn't three guards. Two guards were pursuing Sam, and Rinzler was the third at the head of the pack.

Gritting her teeth, she set her sights on the guard closest to her and removed her disc from her back. Coming up beside him, she lashed out and took his head clean off, narrowly avoiding the light-cycle when it crashed near her. One down, two to go. Far ahead of her, she noticed a single ball drop from the vehicle. Not needing to be a genius to figure out what that was, she kept a good distance from it whereas the last guard drove straight into it, activating the bomb and vaporizing him and the light-cycle. Now all that was left was Rinzler. Yes, he'd helped her by telling her what was going to happen on the arena and wasn't rough with her, but he was still the enemy and trying to kill her friend. That, she couldn't allow.

Forcing the light-cycle to go as fast as possible, she came up a few feet from Rinzler, caught him off guard, and threw her disc at his light-cycle. It slashed through the side and caused it to slow and malfunction. Stunned by the attack, Rinzler looked back at her. Knowing what she had to do and not having enough time or the speed for the light-ribbon to be effective, she raced ahead of him a few inches and brought her light-cycle directly in the path of his.

The enforcer's light-cycle crashed into hers with devastating force. The impact rocked through her, rattling every bone in her body and a sharp pain shot through her left leg. While his light-cycle was launched into the air, hers rolled too many times for her to count and she landed in a heap, pain jolting through her. She was vaguely aware of another light-cycle activating before her world went dark, the taste of blood in her mouth.

* * *

Hardly having enough time to process the action, Rinzler grasped his spare baton, activating it seconds before landing on the ground. Not in a million cycles would he have thought someone would be stupid enough to pull a stunt like that. He didn't expect Juno to be alive. Good riddance. She'd slowed him down just enough to allow the light-runner carrying Sam to get away, and no doubt Clu would come up with a reason to blame him for the son of Flynn escaping.

His growl intensifying, he didn't bother continuing the pursuit. They were long gone. Instead, he turned back and went to Juno's lifeless form on the ground. There was a pain in his chest, one he recognized as belonging to Tron, and one he didn't like. It was the fear that a User had died and that he'd been unable to prevent it. Shaking away the feeling, he skidded to a stop next to the User's body after retrieving her disc.

Looking at her lifeless body, he turned her onto her back with his boot to get a better look at her. Blood matted the blond hair on the left side of her forehead. It appeared that her left side of her had taken the full force of the crash, her left sleeve and pant leg torn, and bruises were already forming over every inch of visible skin on the left side of her face.

Forming…

Jumping off his light-cycle, he knelt next to Juno and placed his fingers at her neck, remembering the time Flynn told him that you could tell if a User was alive by the pulse on their neck. To his disbelief, there was a steady thrumming of her heartbeat against his gloved fingers at her neck. She was alive, but hurt badly.

Wasting no time, he gently picked her light body up off the ground, cradling her in his arms and walked to Clu, standing at his command ship that had just landed. Perhaps it was the residue of Tron's programming, but Rinzler didn't want to see her die and had to take her to the leader. Clu was smart. He would see that she would be more useful alive than dead.

Juno shifted in his arms and groaned in pain. Flinching with each step he took, she slowly opened her eyes, struggling to focus, and stared up at him. For no reason, tears sprang to her eyes and he realized that she must believe that if he was alive then her friend was dead.

The sight of the liquid forming in her green eyes made his chest tighten and he glanced around before saying quietly, "Your insane stunt worked. The son of Flynn escaped."

The relief on her face was probably visible from the stadium and her head lulled against his chest, a relieved smile playing at her lips as she slipped back into unconsciousness.

His eyes never left her face as he carried her to Clu, silently hoping that she would wake back up and be fine.

"What's this?" Clu asked, and upon Rinzler reaching him, he saw that it was Juno, and asked, "Is she alive?"

Rinzler nodded.

Clu looked at her thoughtfully, cocking his head to the side. "The individual who rescued Sam is no doubt working with Flynn. We keep her alive, show Sam that she's alive, he'll come running. And if he comes running, Flynn won't be far behind him." Nodding to his own plan, he said to his enforcer, "Take her on board and see to her wounds. I have things to do."

Rinzler nodded and followed Clu onto the ship, going in opposite directions. While his leader went to speak to Jarvis, he took Juno to the couch at the front of the ship.

Gently, careful of her wounds, he laid her down. He stared at her for a long moment, contemplating how to treat her injuries. Programs didn't bleed or bruise, and their wounds healed into scarred code after a short while. This looked much more serious.

Not sure where to begin, he retrieved a bottle of plain liquid energy – the closest thing they had to water on the Grid – and a jacket that belonged to Clu. It was the jacket he'd worn back when he was a good guy, and Rinzler had no qualms about tearing off the sleeve before tearing it again so that he had a few black strips of fabric. He'd deal with the consequences later.

He returned to Juno's side and sat beside her on the couch. Ever so careful, he pushed back the hair from her bruised face. The orange glow of the ship didn't allow him the best view of her fair completion and seriousness of her bruises, but there was no denying that she was a very attractive woman. The sigh of the bruises, cuts, and blood pained him, but they didn't take away from her beauty. It had been a long time since he felt a magnetic pull towards a woman, and he never expected that pull to come from a User, let alone the female User Flynn considered to be a daughter. But the pull was there none the less, and it put an ache in his chest. The only other woman to have such a magnetic pull on him had been a Program named Yori… he stopped the memory right there, not wanting to dwell on the memory of his long derezzed lover. He'd moved past her death, but that didn't mean he had to like thinking about it, about her.

Sighing, he poured some of the liquid energy onto the fabric and dabbed at Juno's cheek, gently wiping away the blood. Before long, he'd had every trace of blood removed from her face and placed a dry strip of fabric against the gash so that it soaked up the blood there before moving to clean the blood from the rest of her visible skin and wrap some of her wounds.

What shocked him was how warm she was. Programs shared a mutual cool temperature that never varied, but her flesh of hot, pleasantly so in a strange sort of way, and he was tempted to remove his glove so he could get a better sense of how warm she was, how soft she was, his gloved hand already lingering on the side of her neck.

Rinzler abruptly shook away those thoughts and tore his hand away from her, finished with his task. This wasn't a road he could go down. For starters, if Clu ordered him to kill her he would have no choice, and he didn't want to get attached to her if that order came. And then there was the fact that he'd once been Tron. Flynn said that he told Sam of him, but had he also told Juno of him? If he had, then he didn't want her to find out who he had been. He didn't want to see the disgust at what he had become in her eyes.

Moving away from her to look out the window, he sighed. Why did things have to be so complicated?

* * *

_**Coffee keeps me awake to write, but reviews keep me motivated to write!**_


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: **_**Extended chapter.**_

* * *

Every portion of Juno's body ached, muscles screaming in protest when she stretched. The memory of what caused the pain was a blur and she fought through the haze, searching for the answer. A little bit at a time, it started coming back to her. The light-cycle duel, the woman in the vehicle taking Sam to safety while she stayed behind to buy them some time to get away, and crashing her light-cycle into Rinzler's. The mere memory of the crash as it came back made her wince. Reaching up to touch the left side of her face, her arm screaming in pain, she gingerly touched her cheek. She felt a large gash, covered by a piece of cloth, and the skin around it caught fire from the smallest touch. She probably looked like something out of a horror movie.

"Finally decided to join us, have you?"

Juno's green eyes snapped open at the sound of Clu's voice and she saw him sitting in a large chair a few feet from her, Rinzler standing behind him. She panicked for a second upon seeing the enforcer, but then remembered that he'd told her that Sam had gotten away and she relaxed slightly. Forcing herself to sit up on the couch she was laying on, biting back a whimper of pain, she glared at Clu.

He smirked. "What? No thank you?"

"What exactly am I supposed to be thanking you for?" she questioned, in no mood to play games.

"For not letting you die on the floor of the arena."

He expected her to thank him, but Juno was not about to do so. As she recalled, it was Rinzler who had been carrying her battered and bruised body, not Clu. In her book, that meant that he was the one who saved her.

"Fine." She turned her eyes to Rinzler and gave him a small nod. "Thank you, Rinzler."

The enforcer's growl stopped briefly in what she assumed was surprise and he looked down at Clu who looked more amused than angry.

"My enforcer may have lifted you from the ground, but I decided to keep you alive. You're far too valuable to be killed," he said, a smile pulling at his lips.

She didn't like the sound of that. Fighting the headache that was coming on, she tried to think of a plausible reason for them to keep her alive. Sam was Kevin Flynn's son, but she was just a friend. Granted she'd been like a daughter to the man, but still. She didn't know half the stuff Sam did. She was just his friend. And then it hit her. Clu had to know that she and Sam were very close. If Sam found out that Clu had her…

"I'm bait," she murmured, hoping she was wrong but knowing that she was right.

Clu smiled and looked up at Rinzler. "Smart girl, isn't she?" Not waiting for an answer, the smile shrinking a bit, he relaxed back into the chair. "I suspect that the moment Sam finds out you're here, alive and well, he'll come running. And in so doing, Flynn will come after him."

She stared at him. "So Kevin Flynn is alive."

"Last time I checked, yes," Clu replied, a sour look crossing over his face. "I'm eager to see my maker again and change that."

A cold sensation settled in her chest. "They'll know it's a trap." In her gut, though, she knew that Sam would ignore the knowledge of a trap if he discovered that Clu was holding her hostage.

"I do believe you're right. But I'm willing to bet Sam will come running anyways."

She wanted to tell him he was wrong, but she couldn't. Instead, she gave him a forced smile. "For your sake, you'd better hope he doesn't, because he's going to kill you."

Clu started laughing, throwing his head back. "I would love to see him try."

Failing to see the humor, Juno stared at him, wishing her glare could kill him. Of all the things that could happen, she was being used against her best friend and his father. That was the worst thing that could happen. In the back of her mind, she almost wished she'd died. At least then she wouldn't be there for Clu to use as a tool.

"Oh, cheer up, honey!" Clu exclaimed, sounding too much like Flynn when he would try to make her feel better. "You're helping me accomplish something very, very important."

"Helping you accomplish what?"

"I'm afraid I can't tell you that, Juno. That would ruin the surprise." Stretching, Clu rose to his feet. "I have things to attend to and can hardly waste my time watching you, so… Rinzler." Turning to the other Program, Clu said, "I want you to watch her until I discover where Flynn is. Take her to your apartment and keep her there. I don't want her in the way here. The moment I decide to make her useful, I'll inform you."

She had to admit that it wasn't what she was expecting to hear. She'd have thought that Clu would lock her up somewhere, not have his enforcer play babysitter.

Hesitating briefly, Rinzler gave Clu a small bow before walking over to her and grabbing her right arm – the one that wasn't torn up from the crash – and pulled her to her feet. There would be no getting around the pain that would come from standing, but he was being gentle about helping her up so she didn't voice her pain. With a limp, she went with him to the lift and headed down to the lower portion of Clu's command ship where an aircraft – the same model that had picked up her and Sam when they first arrived – was waiting. Securing her feet in the restraints, Rinzler left her alone, going up to pilot the craft. It was slightly different from the others that were like it, so Juno figured that it was his personal ship.

Forced to stand, Juno screwed her eyes shut, swallowing hard against the pain in her left leg. She wouldn't be surprised if her ankle was sprained or if a muscle was torn or badly bruised. With how her feet were restrained it was damn near impossible to shift her weight to her good leg and she had no choice but to grit her teeth and bare it.

Thankfully, it did not take long to reach their destination, landing on a pad at the top of a building. Her restraints disappearing, Rinzler took her right arm and escorted her inside.

She didn't know what she imagined it would look like, but she didn't think it would be so… bland. Aside from a few pieces of furniture, it was bare, the only color coming from the orange circuits running over the walls and floors, giving everything an orange hue.

"I think I'd have gone a different way with decorating," she commented. "A picture, maybe a rug."

Rinzler didn't offer a reply and released her arm before walking away from her.

Sighing, she asked, "Is there a mirror anywhere? I want to check out the damage." She gestured to her face.

Glancing her way, he nodded his head towards a door.

"Thanks," she said, walking into the room when the door slid open, shutting behind her.

Her reflection was worse than she imagined it would be and she gasped. The entire left side of her face was black and blue and she was amazed that her eye wasn't swollen shut. Her cheek was covered with a piece of cloth, no doubt an attempt to bandage the wound there. Needing to see just how bad it was, she pulled the cloth away. It wasn't nearly as bad as it felt. Though long – extending from high on her cheekbone near the outer corner of her left eye, traveling down to her jaw – it was a relatively thin gash that had already stopped bleeding and scabbed over, giving her the impression that she'd been unconscious for a while. It would scar, but as long as she took care of the wound it wouldn't be too noticeable. Turning her attention to her arm, she removed the fabric around it and found her suit torn, cuts visible underneath.

"How do I get this off?" she wondered out loud. The outfit was all one piece with no buttons or zippers. Stumped, she decided to try something and pulled the disc from her back, activating it and searching through things. To her surprise, a few suit styles appeared. "Handy," she mumbled, scanning through a few styles until she chose one where the sleeves ended at her shoulders and the gloves discontinued at her wrist, then returned it to her back. Seconds later, the suit transformed to the style she chose, the armor altering to accommodate the style and the heels changing from four inches to three inches, giving her a clear view of the wounds.

None of the cuts were too deep but most would likely scar.

Sighing, she leaned on her right side against the mirror. Only then did she realize that she was in a bedroom. It was probably the most boring bedroom she'd ever seen. She had to wonder if it was just for show or if it was actually used. Did Programs even sleep? All this just added to her headache.

Feeling awkward standing in the room, she walked back out and found Rinzler staring out the window at TRON City. It was a magnificent view, but she got the feeling he was thinking rather than enjoying the scenery.

Trying to make light of the situation, she said, "I bet babysitting a User isn't your idea of a good time."

He didn't answer. The only indication he gave that he'd even heard her was the slight tilt of his head in her direction.

"Back to the silent treatment?" When he didn't answer, she sighed and shook her head. "I don't understand why you won't talk. Clu certainly likes the sound of his own voice, so does that Jarvis guy. But you hardly talk at all. Why is that?"

Still no answer.

Frustrated, she walked over to the stiff couch and sat down, hissing in pain when her bruises were pressed. So much for passing the time with conversation. For once she didn't want to be stuck in silence. That meant thinking and all she could think about was the fact that she was bait. The knowledge alone made her feel sick to her stomach. If Sam died coming after her it would be her fault. How could Clu be so cold as to use her like that? How could he force Programs to play in games where they could be killed? Jarvis had it wrong back at the arena. It was Clu who was the tyrant.

Looking back up at Rinzler at the window, she couldn't stop herself from asking, "How can you serve Clu when all he does is hurt and kill others?" He didn't answer her and she felt her irritation and anger rising. Getting back to her feet, forgetting the fact that he could easily kill her, she limped over to him. "You've already proven that you can talk, so quit ignoring me." Pissed with his silent treatment, she grabbed his shoulder to force him to look at her. "Will you answer me already?"

His growl grew and he shoved her hand away, advancing on her to the point where she had to back up in retreat.

That was a really stupid thing to do. Heart pounding, her back made contact with the wall and she was left with nowhere else to go and with only a few inches between her and Rinzler.

* * *

Juno was really starting to test his patience and had crossed the line when she grabbed him. Were it not for the renegade programming, he might have just started a bit and brushed her hand away. The instincts programmed in him by Clu told him to advance on her as though she were a threat, having not expected to be grabbed, and to handle that threat with deadly force if necessary. Thankfully, the need for his disks was prevented when she backed up against the wall, proving she was not a threat, and Clu's order to just watch her. If he would have derezzed her, a User, he wouldn't have been able to forgive himself.

He didn't stop advancing on her when her back hit the wall. Only when he came within a handful of inches away from her did he stop, staring down at her as his helmet emitted a low, constant growl. He hated that sound, but it was linked with his system. If he was irritated or angry, the sound started.

Staring at down at her, he saw the fear in her eyes, trapped between the wall and him, but behind the fear was a look of defiance, a spark in her eyes that just wouldn't go away. It was an interesting change to what he was used to. Programs would wilt with fear if he approached them in the same menacing manner or even walked passed them down the street outside the Grid arena. While she was clearly afraid and wasn't going to push her luck, she wasn't going to back down completely.

Swallowing, she said, a slight tremble in her voice, "You can try to intimidate me all you want, but I still want an answer."

Persistent, too, and so help him it was hard not to answer her, to just give in for a change and talk to someone. Not only because she was a User and his original programming was to protect and fight for Users, but because she was different in a good way. Even after he tried to kill her and Sam in the Disk Wars and tried to recapture Sam, she didn't look at him with any amount of hate in her eyes and she still tried to talk to him, was good natured. At first, he'd thought that was how she was with everyone, but when she openly expressed her dislike of Clu that thought was thrown out the window. There were some people she was polite and kind to, and other she was snippy and cold to. It had been so long since he hadn't been spoken to like a subordinate or a mindless enforcer that he didn't know how to react.

Standing before her for another second, he finally shook his head and walked away, bracing his hands on a table while she stayed at the wall, keeping her weight off of her left leg.

Forcing away his long imprinted instinct to just keep quiet, he said slowly, "My soul purpose is to serve Clu as his primary enforcer. I do as he asks whether I agree or not."

Juno was quiet for a moment. "You're saying you have no choice but to do what he says? What, are you programmed to obey him unconditionally or something?"

He nodded.

"That sucks." Stepping away from the wall to sit down, shifting to accommodate her injuries, she asked, "Okay, so I get why you obey Clu – it's all in your programming – but why don't you talk more? He couldn't have ordered you not to talk."

"He didn't," Rinzler replied. "But who do you propose I speak to?"

"Don't you have friends or something?" she pressed.

"No," he replied matter-of-factly. He had no time for friends and those he was often associated with were the type of Programs he would have avoided or fought as Tron.

"Sounds lonely," she commented softly.

"You get used to it," he assured her. The reality was that one could never truly become use to the loneliness that came with being seen as someone else and not speaking.

"Well," she began and he looked back at her to find a crooked smile on her bruised but still lovely face. "Now you have someone to talk to. At least for a while."

Her smile was contagious, and for the first time in many cycles he smiled beneath his helmet.

Relaxing his posture, he pushed away from the table he was standing in front of and crossed over to the window. He looked out at the city – named in his honor – and couldn't help but feel a little angry. It looked the same as it always had, but it was far from what it used to be. Once, Programs had lived a free life. Programs weren't limited to their functions and could mingle freely with others. It had been a beautiful city once, inside and out. But now it was nothing but a shell of what it once was. As beautiful as it was, it had become internally corrupted by Clu and his tyranny, his insane desire for his view of perfection.

"Hey, uh, now that we're on speaking terms," Juno started, drawing his attention. "What are these?"

Looking over his shoulder at her, he saw her tapping her index finger against the white circuitry on her uninjured leg. "It's your circuitry," he replied easily, and she groaned.

She huffed and said irritably, "I know that, but what are they? I mean, technically. Those freaky chicks who outfitted me and gave me my disc wouldn't tell me."

Rinzler took a minute to think of how best to answer her. The function of circuitry was common knowledge among Programs and the only time he'd needed to explain it was when Flynn asked for a better description many cycles ago.

"The color of your circuitry represents your primary function, but it can also represent your beliefs," he explained as simply as he could. "Blue circuitry is for neutral Programs, Programs who fight for or believe in the Users, and security Programs. Red and orange are restricted to those who do not believe in the Users or were repurposed, and are loyal to Clu alone. Yellow is for corrupted or rogue Programs, such as Clu. There are a few other colors and many variants of the colors, but white is the color of Users." White was also for the ISOs, but he chose not to bring up the extinct race of Programs.

His circuitry had been very close to being white as well, the only thing keeping it from being perfectly white was the blueish tint to it indicating that he wasn't a User or an ISO.

"If we want to know someone's function in my world, we have to ask what they do," she commented, looking at her circuitry. "Circuitry would make things a lot easier, though. I can't tell you how many times I've had guys lie to me and say they were in the military or some high paying career when they really sat behind a desk in a cubical or flipped burgers."

"Programs on the Grid don't lie about their function because it was next to impossible to do so, our programming literally etched into our skin and showing up on our clothing."

She looked at him curiously. "You have circuitry on your skin?"

Rinzler nodded. "Our bodies are lined with thin, glowing lines of circuitry that are more complex than what everyone else sees," he explained, turning to face her fully. "Our faces are typically void of circuitry, but our chests, arms, and legs always have it. Some Programs, such as myself, have circuitry on our backs as well, but not all of us do. Like your fingerprints, our circuitry is unique and no two Programs have the same pattern."

"They sound like digital tattoos," she said with a hint of a smile. "Can Programs get tattoos?"

"Yes. Sometimes it's a line over the lip, under the eyes, or somewhere else on the face, or a pattern regarding their affiliation on their forehead."

"But you all don't have anything intricate like the faces of others, a fancy design, or names or something inked on?" she asked.

Frowning, he shook his head, and asked, "No, why would we?"

"Users get tattoos of someone's face sometimes. A few people get their arms covered in tattoos, or even their whole body. A buddy of mine has his son's name tattooed on his bicep and a bunch of others, while my other friend has a quarter sleeve made up of flowers. It's a good way to express yourself. But me?" She shook her head. "I have only one tattoo and one is enough. It took a good seven hours to get it done and it hurt so much. I just can't see myself ever going through that again."

He was curious to see what the tattoo was that she spoke of, wondering how different they were from what was common on the Grid, but her mention of pain drew his thoughts elsewhere.

"How are you wounds?" he asked, looking her over. "I'm not accustomed to treating the injuries of Users, so I'm afraid I wasn't able to do much more than wipe away the blood and cover the wounds."

"You did fine," she assured him with a half-smile. "And they hurt like hell, but believe it or not I've had much worse." Leaning against the armrest, propping her head up with her hand while he looked back out the window, she said, "There was this one time when I was nineteen where I had to spend two weeks in the hospital, all thanks to Sam. He was teaching me how to ride and care for a motorcycle, and he wasn't exactly the best teacher. He'd tell me to do something, and would then say I was doing it wrong when I did what he said. God, we were driving each other nuts. I'd tell him to shut up and quit hovering, and he'd tell me to shut up and do it right. After an hour I was ready to hit him just to get him to quit yapping at me like he was my mother. Once I'd managed to get a grasp on the workings of the motorcycle, he decided he wanted me to ride with him as a passenger for a few miles to get a better feel for it, and we, uh…" Juno trailed off into silence, sighing.

Wanting to hear more about the story and just enjoying the sound of her voice, he looked at her over his shoulder, and asked curiously, unsure of why she fell silent, "What happened next?"

Her eyes snapped up to him, surprise flickering over her features, but she continued, "Um, we ended up wrecking when Sam swerved to avoid hitting a deer. We both had some major road burns and I broke my left legs while he busted his arm and a few ribs. It could have been worse if we hadn't been wearing helmets, but we both pulled through. His Dad's bike is another story. He's still trying to fix her." Finished with her story, she carefully worried on her lower lip, and added, "Sorry about trailing off a second ago. I didn't think you were listening, or if you were that you weren't interested."

"Oh?"

"Well, I can't exactly see your face, and you weren't facing me or indicating that you were listening, so, yeah," she explained.

"I was listening," he replied, crossing over to sit on the opposite end of the couch. "You and the son of Flynn are close, I take it?"

"Yeah, we're pretty close. We grew up together and his dad was the only father figure I ever had until he went missing, and then Alan took his place. Sam's like my brother – I'd do anything for him," Juno said, shifting on the couch to face him.

Having her refer to Sam as a brother brought an odd sense of relief to him, and he had a fairly good idea as to why he felt relieved. He couldn't afford to feel like that. Not anymore. But he didn't want her to cease speaking either. Loneliness was something he'd accepted long ago, but he missed the company of another, companionship.

Against his better judgment, well aware that continuing any conversation with her would only strengthen the pull she had on him, Rinzler requested, "Tell me more about the User world."

A small smile found its way to her lips, and the young woman eagerly told him what she could about the User world, about her friends and brother, and answered his questions with enthusiasm on the condition that he answer hers as well.

Talking to Juno came easily to Rinzler, was something he enjoyed, and he knew that he was in trouble.

* * *

_**Coffee keeps me awake to write, but reviews keep me motivated to write!**_


	6. Chapter 6

It had been three hours since arriving on the Grid, one of those hours spent in Rinzler's apartment. Juno hardly noticed though, too focused on talking to Rinzler to really pay much attention to the time.

Though Rinzler wasn't very chatty and didn't talk much about his life on the Grid serving under Clu, he replied to all of her questions concerning the Grid and even asked a few of his own, much to her delight. Mostly she just talked about her friendship with Sam, about her brother, and other random things that went on in the User world such as jobs, vehicles, and the daily routines just about every User had – or at least the routines she and her friends had. It was hard to believe that Clu's enforcer could be so pleasant to talk to.

As strange as it was, Juno felt comfortable around him, more so than she had around anyone besides Sam, Marcus, and her friend Cindy in a long time. She couldn't even remember being so comfortable with her ex-boyfriend who she had been with for years before breaking up. That came as a surprise to her considering she had a habit of attracting the bad boy types and it wasn't typical for her to meet a good guy. But then again, Rinzler wasn't a good guy, not really. He was being good to her but she didn't want to think about how many Programs he'd killed since Clu took control of the Grid. Was he really to blame, though? As he told her, his programming forced him to follow Clu's orders whether he wanted to or not. Technically, one could say that Clu was the killer, and Rinzler was just his weapon of choice.

She sighed, wondering why she was trying to make Rinzler into a good guy and hating the headache all the confusion was giving her.

Tilting his head a bit to the side, Rinzler asked, "Is something wrong?"

"Hmm? Oh, no. I was just thinking." Almost shyly, she admitted as an afterthought, "About you, actually."

"Me?"

She nodded. "I'm trying to figure you out. You're like a riddle wrapped in an enigma."

He made a sound that she swore was a chuckle, and asked, "Am I that complex?"

"Oh, yeah. On the one hand you're this badass warrior who kicked my ass and Sam's in the Disc Wars, you're worshipped by the Program's that were watching the whole thing, and are more than talented with a light-cycle," she explained, leaning against her right side on the couch, facing him while he sat on the other end. "But on the other hand, you seem like a good guy. After finding out I was a User you've never been unnecessarily rough on me or nasty, and even though you didn't know what you were doing you tried to take care of my wounds. Not to mention you're enjoyable to talk to. I dare say you're kind of polite."

Slowly, Rinzler turned his head and looked away. At least it looked like he was looking away. She couldn't tell because of the helmet. For all she knew, he could be watching her out of the corner of his eye. "I'm not a good guy, Juno. You would do best to accept that right now."

"I think you are a good guy and just don't know it," she countered, refusing to believe that he was just as bad as Clu and his minions. But as she watched him, a thought popped into her head. "Or maybe you do know it but are just denying it."

Sighing, he rose from the couch, walking away from her. "Why does it concern you?"

She really didn't have an answer to that. There was no reason why she should care whether he was a good guy at heart, but something about him grabbed her attention and refused to let go. It wasn't the bad boy aspect of him that attracted her, but the good that he'd shown her in the short amount of time they'd spent together. There was no question about it – she was attracted to Rinzler. That there threw her for a loop, and Sam would shoot her dead if he found out. Something about him captivated her, made her want to know him, and so help her she felt like she kind of did know him. There was something about that damn light-suit he wore that looked so very familiar, especially the tiny orange squares the formed a T on his sternum.

Why did that look so familiar?

Rather than embarrass herself by asking him about the suit and voice her attraction to him, she said, "I don't like seeing people unhappy. You, my friend, don't seem very happy."

"Whether I am happy or not is irrelevant," he sighed, his back to her.

"How is that irrelevant? What's the point in living if you aren't happy?" But then she answered her own question. He was forced to obey Clu unconditionally, and she was willing to bet that he regretted some of the things he'd done while under orders. "But your life isn't exactly your own, is it?" she asked gently.

Rinzler didn't reply and she didn't press for an answer this time. He'd been talking to her willingly for a while now and she didn't want to push him away by being too nosy. Instead she let the touchy subject drop for the time being, deciding to bring it up again later if he did not do so. She couldn't imagine what it must be like to blindly follow orders without question, even the orders you didn't want to obey. It had to do a number on one's mental health. She suspected that was why he thought being happy was irrelevant, even though it wasn't. It hurt that he believed that. No one deserved to live that way.

"What's your life like?" Rinzler asked out of nowhere, back still to her.

"Well, I already told you about my brother and my friendship with Sam. What else do you want to know?"

"I want to know about _your life_," he clarified. "Not about your friends' lives, but your own. What makes you who you are in your world."

"Well," she paused, thinking of how best to describe it all and uncertain of where to begin. She didn't really feel comfortable talking about herself. "My apartment is not as organized as yours, nor is it neon orange. I have a cat named Jinx, and I'm a bartender at a nightclub. Unlike Sam, I've always preferred cars. I've got this nice silver Camaro that use to belong to my mom before she… before she died." She sighed. That was about the time her life started going downhill. "There really isn't much to say, at least nothing worth hearing."

"Let me be the judge of that," Rinzler pressed, turning to face her and leaning against the wall.

"Um, okay then." Searching her memory, she tried to find one of her truly happy memories. One specific memory came to her and though it wasn't happy, it had had a significant impact on her life. As personal as it was, she decided it would be okay to tell him. Maybe by opening up to him a little more, he would in turn open up to her. "After my mom died four years ago, I started doing some pretty stupid things. Drinking, drugs, you name it and I did it. I was seriously depressed for months after receiving the news to the point where I deeply considered ending it all. Life… just breathing hurt. Marcus tried to help but only made things worse by getting deployed. Every single member of my family was in the military and everyone but Marcus has died because of their careers. My dad was killed when I was one after stepping on a land mine, and my mom died when her helicopter's engine failed. When my brother left I felt alone, like everyone was leaving me. Of course I had Sam, but I still went downhill. If felt like everyone was leaving me." Taking a shaky breath, she fought against the tears stinging her eyes. "One day I decided to go to the beach just to watch the sunrise. I hadn't done that in a long time, and it was a spur of the moment thing. Anyways, I got to the beach and sat on the sand for a good hour with a nasty hangover, thinking about all the shit I'd gotten into and how screwed up my life was. Somewhere in the midst of it all, I remembered my mom taking me to the beach when I was a kid to watch the sun come up. She told me that no matter how bad the day before was, a sunrise signaled the beginning of a new day. The past was the past and we could do nothing but move on with our lives. If we dwelled on all the wrong we did the day before, we'd fall apart from the inside out. I know she was talking about herself and some of the things she'd seen in the Air Force, but still…" A single tear fell from her eyes and she sniffled before she looked up at Rinzler. "That was the first day I cried since my mom's death. I just let go and let it all out while the sun came up. I always knew that she wouldn't want me ruining my life, but it didn't actually sink in until that moment. So, as hard as it was, I put the pieces back together and eventually moved on. I still go to the beach and watch the sunrise whenever I've had a bad day to remind me that everything will be all right."

Silence hung between them, uncomfortable and awkward. Juno had told only three people what she just told him, those three people being Sam, Marcus, and Cindy. Somehow she knew that he wouldn't use that painful knowledge against her. She truly felt that she could trust him with her past.

"That's the second time you've told me something personal about yourself," Rinzler said, voice sounding raspy because of his helmet. "Why do you keep doing that?"

Hesitating, Juno glanced at her hands before turning her green eyes up to him. "I like to think I'm a good judge of character. I, well, my gut tells me that I can trust you."

"… You trust me?" he repeated incredulously.

She nodded. "Yeah, I do."

* * *

Staring at the User sitting on his couch, Rinzler found it hard to believe that she actually trusted him, but she was dead serious and meant it, that much was obvious. She was the strangest person he'd ever met, User or not. He found himself drawn to her even more because of it. It felt as though he'd known her for cycles rather than a few hours. The feeling wasn't something he was use to and the only time he could remember feeling something similar was when he was near Yori.

A sharp pain hit him in the chest.

She had been derezzed shortly after Clu repurposed him, and it was his fault. Clu had known that he cared about Yori a great deal and made him watch as she was tortured and derezzed, Clu's sadistic way of testing his control over Rinzler and his loyalty to him. All the while as Yori screamed and begged for him to help her, he just stood there and watched, unable to go to her aid, and the last thing he saw in her eyes was hate and disgust at what he had become. If that didn't prove that his identity of Tron was gone, he didn't know what would prove it.

More than anything, Rinzler didn't want Clu to discover that he was attracted to Juno, that he was starting to care about her, if only to keep her from sharing Yori's fate. He didn't want Juno to be derezzed and did not want her to look at him the way Yori did in her final moments.

Looking away from her, he sighed, "I wish you didn't trust me, Juno."

"Because you feel you don't deserve it, or because you might be ordered to hurt or kill me?" she questioned.

He didn't answer right away.

"A bit of both," he finally replied, stepping closer to the window to look out at the city.

Behind him, he heard the fabric of the couch shift as Juno got to her feet and heard the soft click of her heels as she approached him. Coming up beside him, she looked out the window, her gaze shifting between different buildings and aircrafts. With her eyes looking elsewhere and his own safely hidden from her view by the helmet, he looked down at her out of the corner of his eye. The bruises and the wound on her cheek and arm were things he decided he hated seeing on her. Programs could be scarred, but they didn't bruise or bleed. He wondered if the damage to her was as painful as it looked. Despite the wound and bruises covering her face, though, she was still quite beautiful.

Tucking an errant strand of light blond hair behind her ear, she sighed and turned to face him. "You probably don't deserve to be trusted, Rinzler," she said matter-of-factly, searching for his eyes.

He wasn't expecting her to say that and was temporarily at a loss for words.

"But," she continued, "You're not cruel, not like Clu is. The things you've done, whatever they may be, are because of his orders, not because of your own choices. Since meeting you… well, since the disc wars I've seen a side of you that's not so bad at all. Guess that gives me hope that there's a good guy in there somewhere." She nudged his foot with hers, giving him a crooked smile.

Genuinely touched by her words, he swallowed a lump in his throat. "You're too trusting for your own good."

"Probably," she agreed, staring at him thoughtfully. "Does that helmet come off?"

He hesitated to answer.

While it did retract from his head, he hadn't shown anyone his face since he watched Yori derez when he ceased being Tron. The only time he ever removed it was when he was alone in his home. He didn't want anyone to see that he was once Tron, and the helmet gave him a small sense of privacy. He could smile or glare without anyone knowing it, could refuse to look at something, close his eyes and go somewhere else when forced to stand beside Clu when he did something awful. The helmet was his haven.

"It does," he answered honestly, having the courtesy to at least answer her question.

She waited as if expecting something. After a few seconds, she asked, "Can you take it off? It's a little weird talking to a guy wearing a helmet like yours. Besides… I want to see your face," she added, a faint blush coming to her cheeks.

"No."

Juno frowned. "Why not?"

"Because you don't need to see what I look like," he replied, irritation seeping into his voice.

"I might not _need_ to see you, but I'd like to. What's the harm in me seeing what you look like?" she asked, crossing her arms over her chest, confused about his reluctance.

The harm was that she might realize that he bore a striking resemblance to how Alan Bradley looked when he was much younger – in his late twenties – given that the man was his User. There were subtle differences with Rinzler's appearance, though. While Bradley's hair had been brown, Rinzler's hair was black, and he was more muscular with eyes that were a more intense blue. Had Juno not mentioned that Bradley was a longtime friend to her and Sam, he might not be so reluctant to show her his face. However, if she was told of Tron by Flynn, then the risk that she might link him to Tron was too great. He didn't want her to see how far he'd fallen.

Keeping his eyes focused city, he said, "No one has seen my face in many cycles, Juno. Keeping it hidden gives me a sense of privacy that I can't find anywhere else."

"I guess I didn't think about it like that," Juno grumbled, eyes roaming over the helmet. "But don't you ever just want to take it off in front of someone and stop hiding behind it?" He didn't answer but he didn't need to. Sighing, she asked, "Can you at least think about taking it off at some point?"

After a moment of silence, Rinzler nodded, bringing a small smile to her face.

* * *

_**Coffee keeps me awake to write, but reviews keep me motivated to write!**_


	7. Chapter 7

After deciding to end the subject, Juno planted herself on the couch again, keeping her hurt leg stretched out and leaning back against the armrest while Rinzler went about his business as though she weren't there.

She really wanted to see his face. It wasn't very comfortable talking to a black helmet all the time. Not to mention she wanted to hear his voice without the electronic garble lacing it, wanted to see if he was handsome or not. Wondering what he really sounded like and whether or not he was handsome was the last thing she should be thinking about right now. There were more pressing issues, like her being bait, but she couldn't help her mind from wandering. Leave it to her to be attracted to someone she was supposed to hate and at the most inconvenient of times. He wasn't even human! But that really didn't matter to her. And he wasn't what she would call evil, not like Clu and that Jarvis dude. Of course he had a darker side to him as a result of his programming. Was he really to blame for what he'd done? She didn't think so. For her, it was hard not to like him.

She sighed, her feelings giving her a migraine. Or maybe it was the lack of a decent amount of sleep that was making her head hurt. Shifting so that she could use the headrest as a pillow, she got comfortable.

A thought coming to her, she looked over at Rinzler. "Do Programs sleep?"

Looking towards her briefly, he replied, "Not in the same way you Users do. We go into a period of inactiveness, usually in a pod-like structure on a wall. You probably saw these structures when you were fitted for armor."

"So that's what those things were." She became confused and pointed back towards the bedroom. "Why do you have a bed then?"

"It's used mostly for relaxing but it's not very comfortable. They can also be used for _entertaining _Programs of the opposite gender."

She arched a brow. "Programs can have sex?"

He chuckled. "You sound surprised."

"Sorry, it just never occurred to me that you all could since you're not Users. Is it… well, uh," she hesitated, shifting uncomfortably on the couch. "Is it the same way Users have sex, or do you not know how we, um, you know, do it?" That was just about the most awkward thing she'd ever asked anyone. Actually, that _was _the most awkward thing she'd ever asked. Why she even asked, she didn't know. Sometimes her mouth spoke before her brain thought it through.

From the looks of it, the awkward conversation made Rinzler a little uneasy as well, judging by how he cleared his throat and looked away from her. "I can't say I'm familiar with the intimate interactions between Users, but here on the Grid it's both physical and linked to our circuitry. Both the circuitry on our light-suits and skin are responsive to touch, but unlike the circuitry you see on the suits and clothing, the circuitry on our skin is very sensitive. As for the, uh, the physical part of intimacy on the Grid, we, uh…" He trailed off, trying to figure out how to thoroughly answer her question without being crude

"Just stop there," she interrupted, not wanting to make him uncomfortable. With how he was tripping over his words here and there, that was exactly what she was doing. "I shouldn't have asked."

He breathed a sigh of relief at that topic ending.

Sex wasn't exactly an appropriate conversation with anyone whether in the User world or on the Grid. It was interesting, though, to learn that the circuitry lining a Program's body was exceptionally sensitive.

The Grid was so unlike her world but also quite similar, more similar than she could have predicted from Kevin's stories alone. The atmosphere and weather wasn't like her world. The arenas, streets, command ship, and Rinzler's apartment all shared the same temperature, while the temperature difference in her world was constantly changing, and there was no sun – she missed seeing the sun. It looked to be raining outside, and the "water" almost appeared to soak into the buildings. It could be energy, remembering that Kevin told her once that water was replaced by liquid energy.

What was similar about the Grid and her world were the Programs.

They had lives and jobs – functions – their versions of cars and motorcycles, had likes and dislikes, and could be angry, afraid, happy, and sad. Not to mention they could form intimate relationships with other Programs. Her thoughts returning to the feelings surrounding Rinzler that had been nagging at her for some time now, she felt a question in her mind begging to be asked.

Despite it being a very personal, the young woman asked quietly, "Have you ever been in love?" She was sure that her cheeks had turned pink. It really wasn't any of her business, but she wanted to know if only to find out if Programs could love. If they couldn't, then she would ignore her feelings completely, but if they did… well, then she didn't know what she would do.

The question must have struck a nerve because he visibly tensed. It took him a full minute to answer. "Once. A long time ago."

It was a relief to know that he could love, but something in his voice made her frown.

"Bad experience?"

"She was derezzed."

Her throat tightened painfully. "I'm sorry," she murmured.

They lapsed into an uncomfortable silence and she regretted asking the question. Damn her and her crazy feelings! Now she'd made him think about his derezzed lover.

"Have you?" he asked quietly.

Startled, she stared at him. "Have I ever been in love?"

He nodded.

Looking up at the ceiling, she thought for a long moment. "No, but I came close a couple years ago after I cleaned up my act. He actually made me feel special and got me whatever I wanted and did everything he could to make me happy. He was what would be described as a bad boy and got me in trouble more often than Sam did, though, but I cared about him and thought we had a chance at something real. We'd been dating for a while and it was all good until I found him in my bed with a pretty little redhead." A smirk played at her lips. "He tried to make excuses and get back together but I made it clear that I wasn't interested with a solid kick to his groin before throwing his shit out the window. Later on I bought a new mattress and bed sheets."

Rinzler shook his head slightly. "The same thing happens here; Programs who are involved spending their time in the arms of another. I'm sorry that happened to you."

"And I'm sorry you lost the person you cared about," she replied sincerely. Uncomfortable discussing sex and their love lives, or lack thereof, she said, "I vote we change the subject."

"All right," he replied with what sounded like a nervous chuckle. "What would you like to talk about?"

"Hmm…" She thought for a few seconds. "Do you eat?"

"Yes, but our food contains the pure energy we need to sustain us. There's very little flavor to it."

"Doesn't sound very appetizing," she commented. Closing her eyes, imagining her favorite food, she said, "When I get back to my world, I'm going to cook up a cheese burger with french fries for dinner, and top it all off with chocolate ice-cream and strawberries for dessert."

"… Clu's not going to allow you to leave," he said sadly, voice quiet.

She sighed. "Yeah, I figured that. Hell, I don't even know if there is a way to get home. But where there's an entrance there's and exit. After I figure out how to get back to Sam, we'll find his dad and get out together," Juno said firmly, believing every word.

One way or the other, they would be going home.

After she was reunited with Sam, finding Kevin would have to be their first priority. But knowing Sam and how he was he'd probably already found him. For all she knew that woman that rescued him from the arena could have taken him to his father. If that were the case, she would only have to find the two and then they could search for a way out. Kevin likely knew how to get out, or at least she hoped he did. He knew the Grid better than anyone. If there was a way out, he knew where it was.

* * *

There was a way out. Rinzler knew that for a fact.

Often, before he was repurposed, he would escort Flynn to the portal, complaining about how he didn't like him waiting so long to leave when the portal would only be open for less than an hour. Flynn never changed his ways and always insisted that everything would be all right. Flynn had been wrong the last time he said that.

Rinzler thought of telling Juno of the portal and how it would only be open for another five hours, soon to be only four. But it would be pointless to do so. She would need to find a way across the Sea of Simulation and even if she did find a way he doubted that she would ever consider leaving without Sam and Flynn. It didn't matter if the portal would be closing in minutes, she wouldn't leave without them. He didn't have to know her for cycles to know that bit of knowledge. That was one of her traits that he respected about her. She was willing to sacrifice her own well-being for those close to her, as she'd proven in the disc wars and the arena. No, she would stay until she found them. A part of him was happy about that, not ready to see her leave.

In all his cycles of being Rinzler and Clu's enforcer he had never felt so strongly about someone. He couldn't remember even feeling this way about Yori. Juno was so very different that he could hardly compare the two. He found that he didn't want her to leave when he'd only just found her. He couldn't tell her that though. Hearing him say that he wanted her to stay would probably frighten her. And, if he really thought about it, she deserved better than a life in the Grid. This was no place for her.

Keeping his eyes away from the attractive User on the couch, he went to one of the windows and gazed outside, something he tended to do when pondering over something.

As far as he could tell she hadn't lied to him once. She was completely honest and answered all his questions. She offered person information without being pushed to do so without expecting him to tell her something personal in return. She trusted him. And yet he couldn't bring himself to do something as simple as retracting his helmet and revealing his face. It didn't seem right somehow. It was that fear of how she would react that kept him from doing so, if he was honest with himself. Tron protected the Grid and would have done anything to protect his fellow Programs and those he was loyal to. He'd also had a deep respect for the Users. But that all changed after he became Rinzler. Though he still had that respect for Users, part of him hated them because of his new programming. He no longer protected the Grid, only Clu even though he could take care of himself, and he hunted down other Programs.

If Juno knew the truth, he feared that the sense of trust between them would change if not disappear completely. He didn't want that. But he also wanted to be completely honest with her. Allowing her to believe that he'd always been Clu's enforcer, had always been Rinzler, was the same as lying to her face. She had done nothing to him to deserve being lied to.

Staring out at the city, he tried to decide whether or not to show Juno his face.

* * *

Watching Rinzler, she couldn't help but wonder what he was thinking about after he'd gone silent again and walked to the window a few minutes ago. For the moment, she was content to leave him to his thoughts while she dwelled on her own.

Though she tended to be drawn to bad boys, she'd always hoped that she'd one day find a decent man. She wasn't going to hold her breath just yet, but he was proving to be exactly what she hadn't thought she'd been looking for. He made staying in the Grid sound tempting. Of all the men she'd been involved with, this Program was the only man she ever trusted aside from Sam and her brother. It was strange considering she'd known him for such a short time. But being near him, talking to him, it felt so right and natural, and the feelings she was developing for him left her wanting to stay near him for as long as possible.

Sitting up a bit, she pulled the band from her hair, her light blond locks falling a few inches past her shoulders. As she ran her hair, removing some tangles, she got to her feet and limped over to Rinzler.

He didn't acknowledge her presence beside him so she faced him and tentatively placed her hand on his shoulder, remembering how he'd reacted last time and making sure she didn't surprise him if he really didn't know she was standing there. Instead of smacking her hand away and stalking towards her like last time, he looked down at her hand before sighing and looking back out at the city, letting her hand remain where it was.

Concerned, she asked, "You all right?"

He didn't answer right away and she became a little worried.

Finally, after a few seconds, he turned to face her, towering over her. Lowering her hand, she fiddled with her fingers but kept her eyes on his helmet, searching for his eyes.

"You don't deserve to be lied to," he murmured.

Shifting from foot to foot slightly, she asked, "Have you lied to me?"

"Not exactly."

That didn't make much sense. "Then why are you saying that I don't deserve to be lied to?" she questioned, frowning. "I don't understand."

"You will."

She opened her mouth to ask him to explain himself when she heard a soft clicking sound. And then her eyes widened.

The front of Rinzler's helmet split apart at the center, retracting until it reached the back of his head and disappeared into the back of his light-suit. At last, he stood before her with nothing hiding his face from her view.

For a long moment she could do nothing but stare. There was no denying that he was indeed very handsome, probably in his late twenties. His short black hair seemed to emphasize his dark reddish orange eyes. His eyes were almost the same color as his circuitry, and the color didn't fit his features. The color... she didn't know why, but it didn't looked like his eyes were meant to be reddish orange. But as handsome as he was, something was odd and she found herself scanning over every inch of his face.

She must have been staring for a while because he met her eyes with his questioning gaze. "Juno?"

She smiled slightly at finally hearing his voice without the electronic undertone to it. Smooth and deep. "Sorry," she apologized, still running her eyes over his features. "It's just…"

"What?"

Green eyes returning to his, she said, "You almost look like Sam's and my friend, Alan Bradley. Granted you're much younger looking and handsome, and your hair and eyes are different, but you would probably be able to pass for a younger version of him." A slight laugh escaped her lips. "I'm probably just imagining things."

Jaw tense, Rinzler shook his head. "You're not." Breathing out a long sigh, he looked back out the window. "Program's often resemble the User who creates them, sometimes only slightly, sometimes completely," he explained quietly.

Juno frowned. When she was a little girl, she and her brother would sometimes at Kevin and Sam's house while their mother was away. During those visits, Kevin would tell them all sorts of stories about the Grid and how it worked. After he disappeared and Alan became a sort of surrogate father for Sam, he would tell them things about his work. Remembering all that had been said, she couldn't really understand how Rinzler could be similar to him. "Kevin Flynn once told Sam, Marcus, and me that the only Program Alan created that was similar in appearance to him was Tron."

Rinzler nodded, confirming what she said. "That's correct."

"But then how could you look…" her words faded when suddenly it all came together. The way he acted around her, a User, those square circuits on his sternum that shaped a "T", it all clicked and her confusion turned into shocked realization and disbelief. Staring at him with wide green eyes, voice just above a whisper, Juno uttered one word. "Tron?"

* * *

_**Coffee keeps me awake to write, but reviews keep me motivated to write!**_


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: _I wouldn't call this an extended chapter, but is quite a bit longer than the original chapter had been and has a few more descriptions and whatnot. Just pointing that out._**

* * *

The mention of his name sparked a feeling that had been long buried, and Rinzler tensed, stomping down on the feeling before it could rise to any substantial value. Tron had been derezzed a long time ago. All that was left of the security Program was the physical shell and a few lingering traits.

Refusing to meet Juno's eyes, he replied dejectedly, "Not anymore."

"But how…" she trailed off, trying to comprehend what he'd just revealed to her. "I mean, you're… you… fight for the Users, Kevin told me so! But now… now you serve Clu, and…" Stopping, she put her hand over her mouth and just shook her head, taking a moment to gather her raging thoughts. "What happened?" she asked quietly, shocked.

Where to even begin?

Sighing, he thought it was best to start from the beginning. "Flynn upgraded my programming immensely and brought me to this system to protect the Grid and the Programs within it. During the upgrading, a majority of my circuitry altered. The 'T' used to be in the center of my chest and was much larger, but it now appears on my skin the same way as it does on my light-suit."

She gave a brief nod, with him so far. "Yeah, Kevin told Sam, Marcus, and me the story a few times, and I've seen the poster of what you used to look like."

"Poster?" He didn't understand, nor did he know what that was.

"Nothing, think of it as a very detailed description of what you looked like," she explained vaguely. "Aside from that, he told me all about how he brought you to the Grid to protect it and how you were the best combatant in the Games."

"Did he tell you about the ISOs?"

Thinking back, she shook her head. "Not that I can remember."

"I didn't think so. He wanted them to be a surprise for your world," he said, sparing a quick glance at her. "ISOs – Isomorphic Algorithms. Flynn didn't create them; they came to be all by themselves because the conditions of the Grid allowed them to do so, rising from the Sea of Simulation. He called them a miracle, but Clu thought they were an imperfection, believing them to be a threat to the Grid. In Flynn's absence, Clu began seizing more control over the Grid. I was concerned but didn't attempt to challenge him at first. It wasn't until he started having the Programs who lost in the Grid Games derezzed I knew something was seriously wrong. We ceased being friends after I started saving the Programs who had lost and openly questioned his decisions. More than once I brought up my suspicions that Clu was becoming unstable to Flynn, but he insisted that things were fine. One day, a Virus began infecting the Grid. In the wake of the attack and Clu's sudden anger towards Flynn, I decided that it would be best if I escorted Flynn back to the portal and left a friend to hunt down the Virus."

"Portal?" Juno echoed. "So there is a way out?"

"Yes, but it can only be opened from the outside. It's been closed for many cycles, but after you and Sam came to the Grid it reopened and will remain open for another four to five hours," he explained.

"Okay, so there's a time limit to it," she summarized. "That doesn't explain why Kevin didn't get out when you escorted him there, or how you changed. I'm pretty positive that Kevin wouldn't be so careless as to wait until the last minute to leave."

Rinzler snorted, and remarked, "Not the last minute, but he always cut it far too close." More than once he'd told Flynn he shouldn't cut it that close that it was too risky to wait so long before returning to the User world, but of course the User didn't listen, and he ended up paying for it in the end. "On our way to the light-jet that would take us to the portal, Clu approached us. Immediately, I knew something was wrong. His circuitry had changed to yellow and he asked Flynn if he was still meant to create the perfect system. The moment Flynn said yes we came under attack by Clu and four of his Black Guards. I told Flynn to go and acquired the identity disc of one of the Guards I derezzed and used it along with my own to take on those remaining. After I finished them off, I saw Clu standing over Flynn, preparing to derez him, so I attacked Clu. He was stronger than I was but my only concern was buying Flynn time to escape. He did manage to get away, but Clu overwhelmed me, and after injuring me severally he altered my programming, repurposing me to serve him under the identity 'Rinzler'." Remembering that day and what had transpired after sent a shudder through him, made him feel ill. "My original programming often clashes with what Clu has programmed, but ultimately my repurposed programming wins and I do whatever I am ordered to do by Clu."

Juno was quiet and Rinzler would be lying if he said he wasn't worried by her drawn out silence. He feared that her silence meant that she was disgusted by what he'd become. If she was, he certainly wouldn't blame her. She had every right to be repulsed by what he had become just as Yori had been. It was precisely why he hadn't wanted to reveal himself to her – he didn't want to see that look again, and certainly did not want her to look at him that way.

Breaking the tense silence after several agonizing seconds, the shocked young woman said quietly, "So, that's why you didn't want to show me your face. You knew I'd put it all together and figure out you're Tron."

He closed his eyes. "_Was _Tron, Juno. But yes, that's why. The only reason I removed it at all was because allowing you to believe that I have always been this way would have been the same as lying to you. You deserved to know the truth."

"Thank you for being honest with me, but how can you claim that you're no longer Tron?" she asked gently. "While I was on drugs and drank, I wasn't at all myself, but I was still Juno."

A dark memory pushed its way to the front of his mind and he clenched his fists at his sides. "Not long after I was reprogrammed, Clu requested my presence on his Command Ship. He'd captured a Program named Yori – the Program I had been involved with at one point. He ordered me to just stand there and to do nothing while he _tested _his control over me. I was forced to watch as he tortured and derezzed her. All the while I was unable to do anything but watch. The way she looked at me…" Disgusted, he shook his head. "Tron would not have stood there and let what happened to her happen."

"I'm so sorry," Juno whispered, voice thick with emotion. "But I think you're wrong about not being Tron anymore."

"You're wrong in thinking that I still am," he retorted, trying and failing to keep the weary irritation out of his voice.

"Am I?" she questioned. "You might have tried to kill me when we first met, but after you found out I was a User you were, for the most part, gentle with me. Before I went to the arena you told me what to expect and to avoid the light-ribbons, and then you saw to it that I didn't die on the ground after I ran my light-cycle into yours and patched up my wounds. Do I really need to continue and tell you how good you've been to me since I've been in this apartment? You've been treating me like a guest and friend rather than an enemy." Craning her neck and shifting next to him in an attempt to meet his eyes, she asked, "Does that sound like how Rinzler, Clu's renegade enforcer, would act? Or is that how Tron would act?"

He chose not to answer, knowing that the latter was correct. But how could he still claim to be Tron after all that he'd done? So many had fallen to his discs – Basics, ISOs, it made no difference to him when ordered to kill. No, he was Rinzler, Clu's personal enforcer now.

"Will you please look at me?" Juno's gloved hand cupping his jaw startled him as she gently forced him to meet her eyes, filled with warmth and heartache, but absolutely void of disgust. Even after he finally looked into her green orbs she didn't remove her hand, keeping it at his jaw in what he suspected was meant to be a comforting gesture. "You know as well as I do that you have been acting like you, not like Rinzler."

"Juno…"

"No," she interrupted firmly, pressing her thumb to his lips to keep him quiet. "You know I'm right."

There was no point in arguing with her given that he couldn't convince her that she was wrong, so he just sighed, dropping the subject for the moment, and looked at her.

Without the obstruction of the helmet, he could better see her face but didn't like the orange hue that had tinted her features since their arrival to his apartment, and the orange glow also made seeing the extent of her bruising difficult.

Wanting to see this woman in a better light as well as examine the damage, he took her small hand in his own and led her outside.

She didn't ask what he was doing and followed without question, trusting him.

Inside where her face had had an orange tint to it, some of the bruises hadn't looked so bad. But outside he saw that she really had been hurt badly. In the white glow of the city's circuits, a more natural light fell on them and he saw that the entire left side of her face was black and blue with shades of green and yellow here and there, and the skin around the gash was a little swollen and irritated. His gaze traveled down her arm and seeing all of the bruises and cuts was a disturbing sight to see, given that Programs couldn't sustain such injuries.

Tentatively, reddish orange eyes returning to her face, Rinzler reached out to brush his gloved fingers over the gash on her cheek, then over her healing split on her lower lip. "Does it hurt?"

"Not as much as earlier, but yeah," she replied soft, her breath hitching when he traced his fingers gently over each bruise.

These wounds were his fault. He'd hit her and split her lip. He'd gone after Sam and the Program helping him escape, forcing Juno to smash her bike into his and crash. No… it was Clu's fault. He had been acting under Clu's orders. But he had still hurt her. "These injuries are why you shouldn't trust me, Juno. One word from Clu and I would kill you."

Casting her eyes to the ground, she nodded. "I know. Some things just can't be helped, I guess. I… I like being around you. More than I probably should, to be honest with you." Emphasizing her point, she took a step closer until there was only an inch of space between them. Raising her hand, she lightly traced the T-like cluster of squares on his chest.

The touch sent a shock through the circuits she touched and he started, reaching up to grasp her hand. The touch had been pleasant and wanted, and it roused the feeling in his chest that he didn't want to feel.

"Did I do something wrong?" Juno asked, worried.

Rinzler shook his head, swallowing. "Circuits are sensitive, remember?"

"Oh, right," she murmured, blushing a bit. "That, uh... that felt good, though, right?"

"... Yes, it did."

Nodding more to herself, she pried her hand from his. After a moment's hesitation, her eyes flickering to his in a silent request for permission, she pressed her warm hand to the symbol that the four square circuits created on his sternum.

Rinzler couldn't suppress the sigh that escaped him, caused by the warmth of her hand against the cool circuits, and allowed her hand to remain where it was this time. If only for a moment, he wanted to bask in the incredible warmth her touch carried and remain as they were for just a little longer. What he wouldn't give to stay as they were for forever…

"Is there any way you can, I don't know, override Clu's programming?" Juno asked, shifting her hand to brush her thumb over the upper squares, fascinated when they glowed brighter. "Can't you remove Rinzler?"

Brushing a lock of blond hair from her face and tucking it behind her ear, he shook his head. "I can't change my programming. I can't go back to being Tron"

That wasn't at all what she wanted to hear. "But you're still you around me," she insisted. "If you can retain some part of yourself then you should be able to."

"It's not that simple, Juno."

"Why not?" she demanded, tears threatening to spill from her eyes.

"Because if it were simple," he began with forced calmness. "Then Programs all over the Grid would be altering their programming, and not all for the better. It's dangerous enough that Clu knows how to repurpose us. Being unable to alter my programming has nothing to do with me being repurposed or retaining fragments of Tron."

Unable to be contained, the tears in her eyes slid down her cheeks, dripping to the floor.

Curious as well as concerned, Rinzler wiped away a stray drop with his thumb. "You did this before in the arena and when you talked about your mother. What is this?" he questioned, wiping another drop away as it slid down her cheek.

Sniffling, she replied, "They're called tears. I'm crying." Shrugging, refusing to meet his eyes, she explained, "It's something User's sometimes do when they're hurt or sad."

So this was what crying was.

Rinzler immediately decided that he did not like seeing her cry. Unsure of what exactly to say, he pulled her to him, putting his arms around her, providing as much comfort as he could.

Almost as soon as she was against his chest she began to shake, burying her face in his neck, her slender arms holding onto him tightly as tears poured from her eyes and hiccuping noises rose from her throat in time with her shaking. He just held her while she did so, smoothing his hand over her long hair.

If he could he would try to override his new programming, but he couldn't. Not even for her.

A few minutes passed before her crying subsided and she took a few shaky breaths. Blinking a few times, she brought her eyes back up to his, red rimmed and puffy. A look of embarrassment came to her face as did a faint pink to her cheeks. "Sorry. Didn't mean to start crying on you."

"It's all right," he assured her, keeping his arms securely around her, finding it difficult to let her go.

Juno brought both of her hands up to the sides of his face, looking in his eyes. "Rinzler," she stopped, the name not appealing to her. "_Tron_… you might not have faith that you can overcome Clu's programming, but I do."

He wished she would stop thinking that. The longer she kept believing that he was still Tron the more it would hurt when she was proven wrong.

"Juno…" The rest of his argument died on his lips when she rose to her toes, pressing her lips to his.

The last thing he expected was for Juno to kiss him, and at first he didn't dare move a centimeter, too stunned to do anything but stand perfectly still. But when she deepened the kiss, increasing the pressure ever so slightly, his eyes slid shut and he tangled his hand in her hair while his other held her close, receiving a soft whimper from the young woman in response. All thoughts of disagreement left his mind, replaced with her and the feel of her in his arms. Her lips were so soft and warm, melding perfectly with his own. Her fingers threaded through the hair at the nape of his neck and her little finger came into contact with a few of the thin circuits at the base of his neck where his light-suit started. The action caused him to suck in a breath through his nose and a shiver to run down his spine, warmth and small shocks surging through the cool circuits she touched and spreading to the rest that they connected to. He responded by catching her lower lip between his, hoping to entice a reaction from her that was similar to what he was feeling. And she did react, a small whimper of sorts escaping her, but it wasn't quite one of pleasure.

Abruptly he pulled back, eying her bottom lip, as a small drop of blood formed on the split. He'd completely forgotten. "I'm sorry," he apologized, but she only smiled.

"Don't be."

A half smile tugging at his lips, and he embraced her, resting his chin on top of her head. She sighed contently, shifting in his arms to get comfortable while returning the embrace, her head resting comfortably against his chest. Were it his choice, he'd stay there forever with her, just as they were now…

And then there was a sudden clapping coming from inside his apartment.

Both Rinzler and Juno turned towards the source of the sound. Immediately, without thinking, he placed himself between Juno and their unwanted visitor.

"Oh, don't stop on my account," said Clu, a twisted smile adorning his face.

* * *

Stunned, holding onto Rinzler's – no, Tron's – arm from behind him, she could only stare at Clu and his group of Black Guards before overcoming her shock and stepping out from behind him, fixing a glare on Clu. After learning of what he'd done to Tron… never had she hated anyone so much.

Smile still in place, Clu cocked his head to the side. "Finally decided to ditch the helmet, huh? She must be special."

Tron said nothing, and she didn't expect him to. No doubt his new programming kept him from talking back to Mr. High-and-Mighty.

Walking around as though he owned the place, Clu said, "I knew something was wrong with you, Rinzler. I noticed how you took extra care in being gentle with the User when you brought her to me along with Sam. I thought it was just some insignificant flaw carried over from your original programming, but I see now that I underestimated how large that flaw is. Of course I had my suspicions, which was why I decided to keep her alive."

Juno stared at him, brow creased with confusion. Glancing up at Tron and seeing the same look, she knew that he had no idea what Clu was talking about. "You aren't using me as bait?"

Shaking his head, Clu replied, "Not quite. If the opportunity presented itself I would have gladly used you, but no, I kept you alive to test Rinzler."

A look of horror came to her face. "What?"

"As I'm sure you know, he was once Tron. I wanted to see just how much of Tron was still present and how much control that… flawed Program still had." Juno took a step forward, fully intent on wiping the smirk from the bastard's face. Tron, however, grabbed her by the shoulders and pulled her back to him, keeping his body angled between her and Clu. The smile Clu's face grew. "And I see that Tron is still present."

"Told you so," she whisper to Tron.

"Not now, Juno," he hissed.

Chuckling in amusement, a thoughtful look found it's way to Clu's face. "Did you now, Juno? Well, since we've all gathered that he's still around, let's see just how much control Tron really has." Smile permanently on his face, he looked to Tron. "Hit her."

Juno hardly had a second to react before she was roughly twisted around, Tron's fist connecting with her cut cheek. The force of the blow knocked her to the ground with a yelp of pain. Bringing her hand to her cheek, she felt blood seeping from the reopened wound. Fresh tears stinging her eyes, she looked up at Tron. Disgust at his action shown brightly in his red eyes.

"Sorry, honey." Clu walked over, standing over her. "Guess he doesn't have much control after all." His booted foot hit her in the gut and the air left her lungs, causing her to curl into the fetal position out of instinct before struggling to her knees, hands flat on the floor while she struggled to catch her breath. "Hmm, this brings back memories, doesn't it, Rinzler? When I tortured Yori. But something tells me that watching me torture and derez Juno will hurt you even more." He sighed. "But unfortunately I don't have time to torture her properly." Turning to Tron, he said, "Flynn's light-cycle has been found and its origin traced. We're heading there now. Prepare you're Recognizer and regroup with my command ship in ten minutes." Giving Juno a cruel smile, he stepped over her and back into the apartment, flanked by his Guards.

When it was clear that he was gone, Tron was on his knees next to her, running his hand over her back before gently urging her to sit up. Pain flared up from where she'd been kicked and her head ached, but she complied.

"I'm sorry, Juno," he whispered, examining the damage he'd done to her cheek. "I'm so sorry."

She hissed when his thumb grazed the wound. "S'okay."

Pressing his forehead to hers, he said sorrowfully, "He's going to kill you after he kills Flynn and Sam."

"Tell me something I don't know," she murmured, fighting back the tears. She didn't want to die, and knowing Clu he would have Tron watch, or he would even have Tron commit the act.

Just as she was getting comfortable in his arms, he suddenly pulled back and met her eyes with his determined dark red ones. "I won't let him kill you. Come on." Helping her to her feet, he took her back inside to the bedroom.

"What are you doing?"

"Clu said for me to watch you here, but the moment he told me to prepare my Recognizer and be ready to regroup in ten minutes that order was overridden. Call it a loophole." Sitting her on the edge of the bed, he took a baton from its hook on the wall and handed it to her. "As soon as I'm gone, jump off the edge outside."

Her eyes widened and her jaw dropped. "I'm sorry, you want me to do _what_?"

Clarifying what he wanted her to do, he said, "Use this the same way you would a light-cycle but twist it and pull it apart at the center. Instead of a light-cycle, you'll have a light-jet."

Holding the baton tightly in her hands, she felt her throat tighten. She wanted to survive, but she also didn't want to leave Tron. "Fight Clu's programming, Tron. Please. Just try."

Cupping her uninjured cheek, he gave her a nod. "I'll try. I promise."

She wondered if he was just telling her that to make her feel better, but at the moment she didn't care if he was lying or not.

Leaning towards her, he gave her a quick but meaningful kiss. "Be safe, Juno."

"You too, Tron," she replied, trying not to break when his black helmet slid back over his head, hiding his face from her.

Without another word, he left her alone in the room.

It took all her willpower to keep from curling up in a ball and crying. She had to be patient and alert, needed to be able to hear the Recognizer leave before she left. But her thoughts were on Tron. She couldn't lose him. Not after she only just found him. It wasn't fair. Using the back of her hand to wipe away a few stray tears, she heard the aircraft's engine roar as it rose into the air, heard its sound dull as it got farther away.

Biting back the pain – both physical and emotional – she left the bedroom, looking out the window to be sure that he was gone. But instead of going outside, she went to the elevator. If Clu asked Tron what he'd said to her, he would have no choice but to tell him. They'd be looking for her on a light-jet. If she took the elevator she believed that she might very well stand a better chance at getting away. It would be risky, but it was the only way. Raising her helmet to hide a good portion of her face and removing her disc to change the style of her light-suit so that it had long sleeves, she took the elevator down to the first floor.

Ignoring the looks she received, she walked through the exit, keeping her steps even and forcing her limp away. As long as no one saw the blood or the limp she would be okay.

She hoped.

Having no idea where to go to start looking for Sam and Kevin, she just started wandering. Her best bet was to find a way out of the city. Hiding out in the city didn't sound like a good idea so she assumed that the Flynn's would be on the outskirts. Then she remembered Clu saying that they'd found Kevin's light-cycle. Did that mean that he or Sam were in the city? There were too many questions for her liking.

Sighing, Juno continued down the street, unaware that a hooded figure was following her.

* * *

_**Coffee keeps me awake to write, but reviews keep me motivated to write!**_


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: **_**Extended chapter.**_

* * *

The white circuitry of the city mixed with what seemed like an endless darkness made Juno feel as though she were walking through an endless maze. While others looked like they knew exactly where they were going, she had to stop every few minutes just to take in her surroundings to be sure that she wasn't going back the way she came. It was starting to get annoying, and she missed the GPS that was secured to the dashboard in her car. Of course if she knew where she was going she might not lose her way as much. All she could do was walk in the direction she thought led to the outskirts of the city, and then, well, then she'd figure out where to go next from there. She wasn't about to ask for directions to the outskirts.

Frowning when it began to rain, she moved to walk more under the shelter of the buildings.

Looking at the circuitry on her chest, she saw that it was soaking up the rain and that the light emitting from the suit was a bit brighter. Maybe it was energy after all.

Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed that someone who had been walking behind her – someone she thought was just walking – turned at the same time she did and walked the same path she did.

Juno tensed, fearing that one of Clu's Guards had seen her leave Tron's apartment. But that couldn't be right. Those guys had orange or reddish orange circuitry. Whoever was following her had white circuitry and he didn't seem to be trying to hide that he was following. Fleetingly, she remembered Tron telling her that only Users had white circuitry. A flicker of hope that it might be Sam sparked in her chest, but she didn't acknowledge it. For all she knew, Programs could change circuitry colors and this could be a trap.

Tossing a quick glance over her shoulder, she tried to make out his face but the shadow from the raised hood obscured her view.

He must have caught her glance because he started walking towards her at a faster pace until she felt him directly behind. It took all she had not to turn and take a swing at his face. The only thing stopping her was the fact that he appeared to want her to know he was there, and he wasn't trying to scare or hurt her.

It had to be Sam. She _hoped _it was Sam.

Taking her arm suddenly, the follower pulled her into an alley and she felt panic pinch at her chest. The alley was not a place she wanted to be. Her panic turned suddenly to confusion when two strong arms wrapped around her, crushing her to his chest.

Holding her so tightly she almost couldn't breathe, he whispered into her shoulder, "I thought you were dead."

And then she knew and he arms immediately returned the embrace, retracting her helmet and clutching Sam in what could only be described as pure relief. He was okay. He was there. He was holding her. Things could only get better from here.

When he squeezed her a little too tightly, she winced. "Easy, Sam. I might not be dead, but I'm not exactly one hundred percent either."

Pulling back with a frown on his face, holding her at arm's length, he gaped at the sight of her bruised face. "Christ, Juno. What did you do, run your face into a wall a couple dozen times?"

"It was a light-cycle, not a wall," she corrected. "Seemed like a good idea at the time."

He stared at her incredulously. "You're insane."

She shrugged. "Tell me something I don't know."

Gesturing for her to put the helmet back on and follow him out of the alley, he said, "That Program in the vehicle that got me out of the arena, her name's Quorra. You're not going to believe who she took me to."

"You're father?" she guessed.

"Yeah," he answered, sounding a little surprised that she knew. "Wish I could say it was a perfect family reunion, but you could probably guess that it wasn't. He told me what happened and why he never came home. There were these Programs called ISOs that manifested by themselves, and…"

"I know the story, Sam," she interrupted, saving him the trouble of going over it all.

More than a little curious about how she knew, he asked, "How? And while we're at it, what happened to you in the arena?"

For a moment she hesitated to tell him about Tron. She was more understanding than Sam was and she had seen firsthand that Tron was not dead, just held prisoner behind the identity of Rinzler. But Sam hadn't and she doubted that he would be so accepting. Hell, did he or his father even know that Tron had been repurposed as Rinzler? She didn't want to tell him for fear that he would outright condemn Tron, but Sam was her best friend, her brother for all intents and purposes. It would be better learning the truth about his childhood hero from her than on his own.

Taking a deep breath, she replied, "To help you get away, I ran my light-cycle into Rinzler's, hence why I look like shit. Anyways, Clu decided to use me as bait in hopes that you would come running after me and in so doing have your father come running after you. He had Rinzler keep an eye on me and eventually Rinzler told me about the ISOs and what happened to your dad. He told me that your dad tried to get to the portal but was attacked by Clu and Black Guards, and that he failed to reach it in time."

His brow creased in the way it often did when he was trying to figure something out. "How could he know that? Was he one of the guards pursuing my dad and while Clu killed Tron?"

So he didn't know.

She swallowed the lump in her throat and forced the words to form in her mouth. "Sam… Rinzler _is_ Tron."

"… What?" he demanded, grabbing her arm and forcing her to a stop. "Say that again."

"Clu repurposed Tron to serve him as Rinzler after he saved your dad," she explained, fresh hate towards Clu resurfacing.

Jaw tense, he raised a hand then put it back down, opened his mouth to say something, but shut it. As a kid, Tron and been his and her hero, and they'd come up with stories to share with Kevin whenever they all got together. To her, Tron was still very much alive and her hero, but for Sam… clearly, he was angry.

Trying to alleviate some of his anger, she said, "Sam, he's still Tron. I know he is."

"How can you say that?" he questioned, angry eyes turning on her. "That… that monster attacked us both, tried to recapture me, and has done God knows what else since Clu took control! How many Programs has he murdered for Clu? How many ISOs?"

Meeting his angry eyes with her desperate green ones, she replied, "He was the one who told me what to expect in the arena. He was the one who made sure I didn't die on the arena floor after I wrecked. We talked for over an hour and… and he let me see his face and…" She quickly decided against telling him that they'd kissed. "Sam, he doesn't have a choice but to follow Clu's orders. That's part of his reprogramming. The only reason I'm standing here talking to you is because he found a loophole in his orders that allowed him to give me the opportunity to escape. Though if you ask me, if Clu wanted to keep me prisoner he should have locked me up instead of left me in a place where I had easy access to an elevator."

Running his hand over his face, he shook his head. "We'll have to tell Dad."

"No!" She looked around, hoping no one noticed her raised voice. "We can't. At least not yet. Let me tell him when the time's right."

"Juno…"

"Please."

"Fine." Continuing their walk with a stomp to his step, he added, "Come on."

"Where are we going?" she asked.

Voice still tight, he answered, "Quorra told me about this guy named Zuse who might be able to help us get to the portal. I traded Dad's light-cycle for this coat so that I wouldn't be recognized as easily. I was trying to find him when I saw you."

The light-cycle!

"Sam, Clu found that light-cycle! He went to Tron and told him that they'd traced its point of origin."

His eyes widened. "I didn't think they could do that. We've got to hurry."

"No argument there."

Keeping up with his quick pace, they passed a few large buildings and kept their heads down to keep from attracting attention.

"Sam Flynn," an electronic but very feminine voice called softly. Turning towards its owner, they found one of those female Programs from the armory with bluish white circuitry, though not one of the ones where Juno had been. This one had white hair and striking features. "You remember me?"

"Yeah," he replied, facing her and giving her a half smile. "You gave me some good advice."

"And you followed it." She smiled sweetly. "It's unfortunate we met the way we did." Turning her attention to Juno, her smile faded a bit. "I assume this is the other User."

"Yes, this is the other User," Juno replied before Sam could. Something about this Program rubbed her the wrong way. "We're actually in the middle of something and have to go."

Frowning at Juno, Sam shook his head slightly before giving the Program an apologetic smile. "Have a good night."

"You're looking for someone," she said matter-of-factly before they could walk away. Now Juno definitely didn't have a good feeling about her.

Sam too appeared a bit wary now. "What makes you say that?"

A sultry smile adorning her face, she replied, "Intuition." Linking her arm with Sam's she said, "Follow me."

Juno rolled her eyes. Even in the Grid women flirted with him.

When Sam looked back at her and gave her a nod, she sighed and followed after them, staying at Sam's side. She had long since learned to go with her gut and her gut told her that the white haired Program in platform heels wasn't what she seemed. Walking with her did have its benefits though. Black Guards glanced at them here and there but other than that they were ignored. Maybe it was because the Program worked in the armory.

Going across the street, they came to a tall tower, guarded by a couple of Black Guards. Tensing as she, Sam, and the Program passed them, the three of them stepped into the elevator without any trouble.

"You certainly have a lot of free reign," Juno commented with an icy edge to her voice, retracting her helmet and running her fingers through her hair.

With a small, smiling glare on her face, she replied, "I'm a Siren. We are well liked among all Programs." Removing her rain coat, the Program folded impossibly neat and did that same for Sam's coat.

"I'm sure you are," Juno muttered, ignoring the look Sam sent her. She did drop it and shut her mouth, however. Now really wasn't the time.

It took a moment for the elevator to reach the top of the tower but it gave Juno the time to look out at the city and think just as she'd seen Tron do. There had to be something she could do to help him. Anything would be better than doing nothing at all. But she didn't know anything about "fixing" Programs on the Grid. Though she was good, Sam was the one who was perfect with computer programs, but she doubted he'd be willing to help her after seeing what "Rinzler" was capable of.

The elevator pinged and its doors slid open, revealing too much light and Programs dressed in white and gray waiting to take their coats.

Curious, Juno asked, "Is this some sort of club?"

The Program guiding them nodded. "The End of the Line Club."

It was far from the clubs she was used to. At the club she worked at, Scorpio, the lights were always dimmed and the music loud. Here, it was far too bright and the music was strange to say the least. If she had to choose between clubs, she'd choose Scorpio in a heartbeat. They weren't there to go clubbing though.

Once again linking her arm with Sam's, the Siren led him along the bar with Juno right behind them. A few more Black Guards were in the club but the Program assured them that they were occupied. By the sight of the female Program on ones lap and another pressed against his buddy, she had to agree that they had other things on their mind.

"Over there," the white haired Program said, indicating to someone ahead of them. "His name is Castor. If you want to speak to Zuse, you need to go through him."

Following her gaze, Juno found a male Program with similar hair and blue/white circuitry chatting with another Program. The closer they got, the more of the conversation could be heard and while Castor sounded amused and unconcerned, the other Program sounded less than happy.

"Programs are disappearing, Castor," the large Program with a scar on his face said. "Soon none of us will be left. Zuse can unite the factions, ferment revolution!"

With an exasperated sigh, Castor replied, "Well, of course, Zuse can do these things."

"Grant me an audience," demanded the Program.

"Your enthusiasm is intoxicating, my dear Bartik, but Zuse's time is precious. We. Shall. See."

Abandoning them, Sam and Juno's guide stepped over to Castor and whispered something in his ear.

Giving her and the Program he'd been talking to a smile, Castor said, "If you'll excuse me for a moment, I have to, um… attend to something. But have a drink," he added quickly, heading over to them with the woman following close behind. "Courtesy of the End of the Line Club!" Smile widening upon seeing Juno, Castor did not hesitate to boldly grasp her hand and link it with his arm. "I must say, you look a bit worse for wear, but you certainly are as pretty as they say, my sweet User."

Despite herself, Juno blushed.

"Such an interesting color," he commented, ushering for Sam to follow beside him as he led them through the crowd. "Come, away from these primitive functions." Grinning, he looked to Sam. "The son of Flynn. Of all the innumerable possibilities, he has to walk into mine and bring with him such a treasure!" he said, giving Juno a too friendly look at the last part. Releasing her and propping his foot up on a stool, he shouted madly, waving his see-through white cane in the air, "Libations for everybody!"

"Am I the only one who thinks his programming is a little screwy?" Juno mumbled to Sam.

His smirk was her answer.

Facing them with a smile, Castor introduced himself with a dramatic bow. "I'm Castor, your host. Provider of any and all entertainments and diversions, at your service."

Getting to the point, Sam said, "We're looking for Zuse."

"Indeed," Castor replied with a sour look. "Many are."

"Where can we find him?"

"This, pretty boy and pretty miss, is a conversation best had behind closed doors. Perhaps we should retire to my private lounge." Tapping his cane a few times, a set of stairs rose from the floor. "I designed it myself, you know. It's true." To the DJs, he said, "I'm stepping away for a moment, boys. Change the scheme, alter the mood. Electrify the boys and girls if you'd be so kind." The music changing, he linked his arm with Juno's again and led her up the steps while the female Program did the same with Sam. "I am amazed that you are out and about, my dear. Rumor was that you had become Rinzler's plaything."

If she wasn't blushing before, she certainly was now, and her cheeks became unbearably hot. "I promise you, they're just rumors."

"Oh, I'm sure. You hardly seem the type to throw yourself at that stiff Program. Although from what I hear, you did throw yourself and your light-cycle at him in the arena."

Biting her tongue to keep from snapping at him for calling Tron stiff, she instead said, "It wasn't one of my best ideas."

"No, I imagine it wasn't." At the top of the stairs he finally released her and went behind the bar.

She'd never been so happy to have her arm back. The guy was downright strange.

Passing her, the female Program – Gem – went to the couch and sat back, staring seductively at Sam long enough to make Juno want to gag. At least Sam wasn't rising to the bait.

Mixing a few drinks with his back to them, Castor said, "Zuse has been around since the earliest days of the Gaming Grid. By necessity, he has to mind all the percentages. All the angles."

Walking up to the bar, Juno behind him, Sam braced his hands against it. "So when do we meet him?"

Setting two glowing blue drinks in front of them before picking up his own, he gave them a knowing smile. "You just did."

A smile found its way to her lips. "Nice cover. Everyone probably expects Zuse to be somebody calm and reserved or something. Not you."

"How right you are!" Zuse exclaimed. "After the Purge, I needed to reinvent myself. Self-preservation, you understand." Clinking his glass with theirs, he sipped his drink.

Tron had mentioned that they consumed pure energy to survive and that it had little flavor. Both thirsty and curious, she took a sip along with Sam and instantly regretted it. This drink did have flavor along with a kick like mule. Since she was in a club, she assumed that it had been mixed with other things to give it some flavor and to make it into the Grid version of alcohol.

She'd never been a true alcoholic and could drink and work around alcohol without being too tempted to go overboard, but as a rule she didn't drink alone, which wasn't a problem since she only liked a few certain fruity drinks. While she wasn't drinking alone, the drink she held in her hand certainly wasn't fruity, and it was as if she'd stuck her tongue to a volt.

Deciding that she wouldn't be finishing it, she set it down. A second later, Sam didn't the same, not too fond of it either.

Sighing, Zuse asked seriously, "Now, what can I do for you?"

"We need to get to the portal," Sam said, voice low.

"It's closing quickly, as I'm sure you're aware," Zuse stated, moving away from the bar. "Tick-tock, tick-tock. And it's quite the journey. Beyond the far reaches of the Outlands. Your father didn't want any Programs slipping out accidentally, did he?"

"Can you help us?" he asked.

Smiling with a chuckle, he nodded. "Of course. But first, as a man who prides himself on staying well informed, I must ask who sent you my way"

Reluctantly, Sam answered, "Her name's Quorra. Said she met you a long time ago."

"Indeed she did," Zuse confirmed, swallowing hard. "Many cycles ago. It was a… different time. But we're not here to relive the past. Let's see about your future, shall we?"

"Wait." He and Sam looked at Juno. An idea had bulldozed its way into her head, giving her a glimmer of hope. "Do you know how to alter the programming of another Program?"

Startled by the question, Zuse frowned. "Why do you ask?"

"I'm just curious."

"Well," he began carefully. "If you are asking if I personally know how to, the answer is no. That is Clu's specialty. _But_… if you are asking if I know how it could be done, possibly, then yes."

"How?"

"The process is rather confusing, but theoretically if you accessed the data stored in one's identity disc you could reconfigure the programming. Everything that a Program is lies within the identity disc. If you can pick your way through everything and manage to find the Program's core function within the disc, one's programming can be altered. It would require intense concentration to make sure that nothing is unintentionally damaged or erased."

Already a plan was forming in her head. Sam might be better with computers and programming, but she was better than average. If she could somehow get a hold of Tron's disc she might be able to get rid of Rinzler, or at the least make it possible for Tron to override Clu's programming.

"If that is the last of your questions," began Zuse, "Then let us see to getting the two of you to the portal. You two will have to change your attire and you'll need forged discs – not easy these days, by the way. And of course you'll need transport to cross the Sea of Simulation." Walking away from them, towards the steps, he stared out at the distant glow of the portal. Grinning, he turned to face them. "This is going to be quite the ride."

In that instant, all hell broke loose.

Four Programs in Clu's Black Guard smashed through the glass ceiling in the center of the club, crouched in a ready position as frightened Programs scrambled to get to safety, panic breaking out in the End of the Line club. Rising, the four Guards activated their light-swords as opposed to discs, some of the light-swords possessing two "blades", while the music changed to a different beat.

Looking directly at them, Zuse said tightly, "I believed in Users once before."

Juno glared at him. The man might have helped Quorra a long time ago, but he was no longer on their side. Somehow, he'd sent word to Clu and his men that they were at his club.

The same realization traveled through Sam's mind and he sent a cold look to Gem who sat comfortably on the couch with a content smile on her face. "Playing all the angles," he summarized, and her smile grew.

Together, the two ran forward, Zuse wisely getting out of their way with a theatrical bow, and the jump from the private lounge to the main floor of the club just below them.

While Sam stuck the landing and rolled to a crouching position with his disc in hand, the young woman's injured leg made her landing less than graceful and she sucked in a sharp breath when her left leg momentarily gave out beneath, bringing her to her knees for a few seconds, before joining her friend to watch the horror that had fallen upon them in the club.

The Program Zuse had been arguing with was attempting to fight the Black Guard with his men but proved out matched, and they were quickly struck down by the elite Guards. Other Programs attempted to fight as well, both out of fear for their safety and sheer hate for Clu's men. They too met the fate of the man who had been speaking with Zuse. Even some of the Programs working for Zuse put up a fight, unaware that their boss was the one who lured the Black Guard to the club.

From the safety of his lounge, Zuse shouted down to Sam, "The game has changed, son of Flynn!"

As two Black Guards approached them, Juno took her disc from her back and got ready for a fight when a woman with white circuits landed in front of them, protectively shielding them from the enemy Programs.

With her disc and a light-sword in her hands, the woman met the two Guards head-on, blocking their attack whilst looking up at Zuse.

He did little more than cackle like a maniac.

Neither Juno nor Sam would let the Program take on all the Guards by herself, so they quickly stood to get in the fight, both Users having one Guard to deal with.

"I met your friend," Sam said to the woman when the passed each other while fighting. "He's fantastic."

So that Program was the ISO Quorra who had sent them to Zuse? She didn't know if she wanted to thank her for coming to help them or slap her for sending them to a psycho.

She couldn't waste time thinking about it, though, as she was forced to duck beneath the Guard's light-sword when it came at her. At one point when she was a kid her mother wanted her to take up fencing, but she refused. Now, she was wishing she had. Fighting guys with swords wasn't her specialty, not even in video games. All she could do was block his attacks with her disc while trying to land a fatal blow. Unfortunately, the Program she was fighting was far more skilled in combat than she was and was prepared for her disc attacks.

It seemed that she would have to try a different approach.

Distracting the Program with her disc, she sent a sharp kick to his groin, praying that male Programs were built like the men in her world. To her utter delight, they were, and the Program groaned in pain, hunching over.

Just as she prepared to land the final blow, Sam shouted, "No!"

Looking over her shoulder, she saw that he wasn't yelling at her, but to the Guards holding Quorra. To her horror, one brought his light-sword down on her arm, shattering it into over a million pieces of code.

With a look of shock on her face, Quorra fell back lifelessly to the floor, Sam hurrying to her side to defend her.

She lost her opening to kill the Program she was fighting and hurried over to help Sam protect Quorra, the two of them needing to work together to keep the four Black Guards at bay. But they couldn't remain where they were for much longer. If Zuse had in fact gotten a message to Clu or something, then he couldn't be far behind these guys, and with him would be Tron. It figured that now that she had a way to possibly save him, to make him the Program he once was, they came under attack. But she needed to help him, one way or another, and with him possibly coming with Clu to apprehend Sam… how many chances would she get to be near him again?

"Get Quorra out of here," she said suddenly to Sam, an insane plan forming in her head. "I'll distract these guys."

"What? No!" he snapped. "I'm not leaving you here, not again!"

"I'll catch up with you, I promise."

"Why the hell do you want to stay behind?" he demanded, angling his body towards an approaching Guard to prevent him from getting to Quorra.

"I have to help him, Sam," Juno replied. "I can help Tron, I know I can!"

"Juno, you're insane!"

"I have to try!" she shouted right back. "And you need to get Quorra out of here! How the hell do you propose to save her with these guys on your ass?"

The mention of saving Quorra got through to Sam and he looked down at the unmoving woman, torn between saving her and staying to fight with Juno.

She was about to argue her point further when the club fell silent suddenly and the room darkened.

Kneeling at the foot of the steps was an elderly man with his hood raise and hand on the floor. Recognizing him faintly, she looked to Sam and saw the disbelief on his face as well as the recognition. It hit her then that the man she was staring at wasn't a Program, but Sam's father, Kevin Flynn.

His mere presence in the room seemed to have an effect on the Program and they immediately began fighting the Black Guard, and one by one Clu's minions fell, becoming nothing more than shattered code.

The chaos temporarily distracting the Guards, Kevin went to their side and stared at Juno for a long moment as if struggling to place her face. When he realized who she was, he smiled faintly.

"Good to see you, sweetheart," he greeted, and she knew for certain that it was him and not some other doppelganger. Turning his attention back to their dilemma, he said hurriedly to Sam, "Let's split man."

Juno caught Sam's eyes, pleading with him to leave without her.

The young man swallowed and looked at Quorra. With great reluctance, he nodded.

Sad and relieved at the same time, she rose to her feet and backed away from them to help the remained "good" Programs fight.

"Good luck," he murmured, lifting the injured Program from the floor.

Kevin frowned. "You're not coming with us?"

"She's got a plan, Dad," Sam replied, already moving to the elevator.

The man who was like a father to her looked reluctant to leave her behind, but in the end he trusted Sam when claimed that she had a plan and followed his son to the elevator. But while Juno went to help some Programs team up against a Guard, the other remaining Guard slipped past her and shot out a hook towards Kevin that caught his disc just as the elevator doors close.

Not sure why the Guard wanted Kevin's disc but knowing that it couldn't be for anything good, she ran at the Guard while the other Programs derezzed the other one. She managed to sneak up behind him and took his head clean off his shoulders before he had a chance to react.

The disc fell to the ground and she picked it up, holding it tightly to her chest, intent on protecting it when a cane hit her right in the side of the head with a loud crack, knocking her to the floor. It didn't knock her out, but her vision blured considerably and her ears rang, her grip on the disc loosening.

Zuse appeared over her through the haze, a twisted grin on his face as he pried the disc from her hands.

Unwilling to move for fear of passing out, she could do nothing but watch as he twirled his cane around happily and killed the remaining Programs with the energy that shot from his cane.

* * *

_**Coffee keeps me awake to write, but reviews keep me motivated to write!**_


	10. Chapter 10

Flynn's home had been close to what Rinzler had imagined it would look like. It was comfortable with a few trinkets here and there. From what he could tell from his position at the lift, the view of the city was spectacular. The balcony was as close as Flynn would have ever been able to get to Tron City after Clu seized control. Until now.

Abruptly Clu had them leave and head back to the city, sensing Flynn's presence on the Grid as well as seeing the lights aimed towards the End of the Line club, a sign from Zuse that Sam or Flynn were there.

Many cycles ago, Zuse would have helped any ISO in need and had believed strongly in the Users. Many Programs had trusted him. But after Clu took control, things changed and the Program's loyalty shifted from the ISOs and Users to Clu to ensure his own survival. Now Zuse was nothing more than a snitch, expecting that his loyalty would eventually grant him control of the city. It was all a lie Clu used to keep the eccentric Program in line.

Upon returning to the city, Rinzler and two other Recognizers followed Clu's Command Ship to the top of the End of the Line tower, expecting to find Sam and possibly Flynn. Rinzler just hoped that Juno wasn't with them. He suspected that she'd already escaped his apartment with the baton he'd given her and had gone to find her friend, but hopefully she hadn't found either Flynn yet.

The Command Ship hooked with the door to the club where the elevator should have been and Rinzler and the Black Guards linked their Recognizers to Clu's ship before stepping off and entering. Along with Clu, Rinzler, Jarvis, and a group of Black Guards would be accompanying them into the club to apprehend Flynn.

Jarvis fell into step on Clu's other side, and Rinzler was glad that his helmet was in place to hide his disgust. The bald Program disgusted him to no end.

While he followed Clu's orders because of his programming, Jarvis hung onto every word for sheer approval. If Clu wanted it, Jarvis would get it for him. Whenever he had the chance he would try to gain Clu's approval but would typically only succeed in annoying him. It didn't make much sense to bring to sniveling coward with them into End of the Line. He'd be of no use whatsoever. But Rinzler wouldn't – couldn't – speak against Clu's decision.

Flanking Clu's right with Jarvis to his left and four Black Guards behind them, they proceeded into the club. At the bar stood Gem and Zuse, Flynn's disk dangling from his finger. Rinzler noticed that Zuse seemed to be hiding something, ensuring that whatever was behind him was out of sight.

Missing from the scene was Sam and Flynn.

Taking notice, Clu said, walking towards the two, "The boy and Flynn are gone."

There was no indication that Flynn had been there, but Rinzler assumed that Clu had known that Flynn would follow after Sam.

Carefree with a smile on his face, Zuse replied, "I presume, you're Excellency, that they perished in the elevator. But I do have one small gift for you!" he exclaimed, stepping to the side.

Rinzler stood in shock, unable to do anything but stare at the petite blond haired woman sitting on a stool with her arms crossed over her chest, looking at Clu in defiance.

"Now, how did you get out?" Clu questioned, approaching Juno and twirling a long lock of her blond hair around his finger, irritating her and infuriating Rinzler. He glanced back and Rinzler with a frown.

Smacking his hand away in disgust, Juno snapped, "If you were smart you wouldn't have left me alone in a place with an elevator."

"I can assure you that I won't make that mistake twice, honey." Turning his attention to Zuse, a small glare appearing, he asked, "And you _presume_ that they perished in the elevator?" Huffing, he looked back at Rinzler. "Find them."

With a curt nod, he turned and started back toward the ships, reluctant to leave Juno behind.

"Wait a minute," Clu called, bringing Rinzler to a halt. "You forgot something."

Facing his leader, he saw Clu dragging Juno to him by the arm. With a rough push, he shoved the User into Rinzler.

Putting his arms up, he eased the impact of her crash into his chest. Keeping close to him, she looked up at him before looking back to Clu.

No smirk was on Clu's face. No hint of amusement. Just a cold stare and a frown. "Take her with you. When you find Flynn and Sam, kill her in front of them. That should give them pause."

Chest tightening painfully, Rinzler nodded again, grasping Juno's arm and leading her through Clu's Command Ship and to his Recognizer in silence. Fighting his anger if only to keep from holding her arm too tightly, he escorted her onto the Recognizer, releasing her to take the controls. He couldn't remember being so angry. What was she thinking? If the others got away then why didn't she? Now he would have no choice but to find Flynn and Sam and kill her when he did. Nothing he did would stop him from carrying out the order.

Fiddling with her fingers, Juno looked up at her from her spot in the corner. "Tron…"

"Don't," he snapped, piloting the ship down to the ground level.

For once Juno didn't say anything and sighed, watching him pilot. He'd left her unrestrained, giving her free reign to walk around. As angry as he was, he knew he could trust her not to be stupid enough to lunge for the controls or jump off. Then again, she did have the baton he gave her. Still, she didn't appear to be in any hurry to use it.

Gritting his teeth, he asked, "Where did they go, Juno."

"I don't know," she replied softly.

"You don't know, or are you just lying to protect them?"

She looked at the ground. "I really don't know. I told them I'd meet up with them, but I don't see how I can when I don't know where they are."

Shaking his head, he just sighed. He wanted to ask why she'd stayed behind, but was in too foul a mood to listen to her reason.

Taking the ship down, he lowered the deck they stood on to the ground. Stepping off, he checked out the elevator. Sure enough, Sam and Flynn were gone. Sighing, he knelt on the ground, placing his hand on the emblem under his feet. The orange glow from the circuits on his hand intensified as he accessed the Grid's system. Appearing on the floor were Flynn's footprints, leading to the Solar Sailor.

They were going to the portal.

* * *

This probably wasn't one of her better ideas.

Staying at her place in the corner, happy that Tron hadn't restrained her feet, she looked up when he returned to the Recognizer. With his helmet on she couldn't tell if he was looking at her or not and she didn't like it, unable to tell how angry he was with her for getting caught.

Raising the ship into the air, staring straight ahead, he said blankly, "They took the Solar Sailor to the portal."

Though she hadn't expected him to find out where they'd be going so quickly, she wasn't really surprised. Tron was smart and had a great understand for the Grid and how it worked.

She sighed. "I guess I shouldn't be surprised that they're heading that way. Looks I'll be meeting them with some company."

Retracting his helmet, he looked her way. "Why you didn't escape with them?"

Unsure if she should tell him her reason or not she instead said, "I stayed back to help the other Programs distract the remaining Guards while they got an injured Program out. At least this time wasn't similar to the time in the arena. I didn't get hurt as bad."

Shaking his head, he asked, "Can't you be selfish at least once?"

"I can be plenty selfish, just not when it comes to friends or family."

"I'm not sure if that's a flaw or not."

"I like to think of it as a bit of both," she commented. Giving him a small, teasing smile, she added, "You know that's one of the reasons you like me."

He didn't smile.

Casting her eyes to the ground, she bit her tongue. The truth of the matter was that her reason for staying had been selfish. She didn't stay to buy Sam and Kevin time to escape with Quorra, not really. She'd stayed for Tron.

He needed to know why she'd stayed, or at least that she might be able to help him, but there was a chance that if she told him the truth something in his new programming might attempt to keep her from getting a hold of his disc, maybe to the point where he'd unwilling kill her. But she hated the pained look on his face.

"Tron," she began slowly. "What would you do if I said I might be able to fix your programming and get rid of Rinzler?"

For a few seconds he just stared at her, brow furrowed in question. "I would ask you how."

Coming over to stand next to him at the controls, she explained, "I asked Zuse about reprogramming Programs and while he said couldn't do it, he knew how it might be possible to do so. Everything you are is in your disc, as I'm sure you know. He gave me a small summary, but I've got it figured out. All I'd have to do is search for the specifics of Clu's programming on your disc – Rinzler – and, for lack of a better word, delete it. Sam is the computer genius, but I'm still good. I'm sure I could do it if you'll let me."

A conflicting look crossed over his features, a mixture of hope and uncertainty. Looking away from her briefly, he tapped on a few of the touch sensitive controls and the Recognizer began flying on auto pilot.

Walking to her, he placed his hands at her shoulders, rubbing them down to her elbows, and he sighed. "That's common knowledge, Juno."

Common knowledge? "If that's the case then I don't understand why other Program's can't change their programming."

"We can't do it because something in our code prevents it. While we can access the data in our discs, we can't alter the root programming or our functions. Attempting to do so sends a sharp electrical shock through our system and we go into a forced state of in-activeness until our system can reboot."

"Oh," she murmured, understanding a little more.

"And," he continued. "Clu has also programmed a fail-safe of sorts."

"A fail-safe?"

Nodding, he explained, "My programming can be accessed by him or a User but it has been made exceedingly complicated. One wrong move and I'll react with hostility."

She swallowed. "In other words, you'll kill me ahead of schedule."

"Yes."

"So, my options are waiting until you find Sam and Kevin and then you'll definitely kill me, or I can attempt to fix your programming and have you maybe kill me." Tilting her head from side to side, she shrugged. "_Maybe_ sounds a lot better than _definitely_."

That still didn't sit well with him. "It's too risky for you, Juno."

"I've got nothing to lose, Tron. If I fail, I die. If I do nothing, I die. I'm not seeing a third option here."

Gripping her arms a little tighter but not painfully, he ran his eyes over her cuts and bruises before meeting her eyes. "I'm not sure about this. The chance of you actually succeeding…"

"Do you want to get rid of Clu's programming or not, Tron?" she demanded softly. "Because as much as I want to help you, you're not sounding too positive about getting rid of Rinzler."

"It's not that I don't want that," he sighed. "I'm not sure why I'm being so stubborn. It might be that the programming is making me reluctant to just accept you tampering with my disc."

Not about to accept defeat and concede to not trying, she raised her hand to his cheek. "Do you trust me?"

Reaching up to hold her small hand in his larger one, he replied quietly, "Yes."

Bringing her other hand up between them, she held it open. "Then give me your disc."

Tron did nothing at first and she felt his jaw tense against her palm as he tried to make a decision, arguing with himself and with Rinzler. Uncomfortable seconds passed before he let go of her hand, reached behind him, and removed his discs from his back. Separating the two discs, he hesitated momentarily before placing his in her waiting hand.

With a small smile, she stood on her toes and kissed the corner of his lips. Without a word, she strolled over to the corner and sat on the ground, tucking her legs under her.

On her command, an orange holographic image of Tron appeared. With a small tap, it changed into some extremely complex sequence of data that gave Juno pause. Patience wasn't exactly one of her strong points, but for this she would have to be very patient. Biting her lip, carefully avoiding the split, she went to work. She wasn't entirely sure what she was doing or how to get to his core programming, so she just searched through each possible rout, hoping she would get lucky and find what she was looking for. Something flashed red at one point and she quickly stopped what she was doing, taking another rout to the core of Tron's programming. Any other time she needed Sam he would be by her side in an instant. Now… now she was on her own.

Catching Tron pacing back and forth out of the corner of her eye, she asked, keeping her eyes locked on what she was doing, "Could you, please, stop doing that? You're making me nervous. As it is I feel like I'm working on an active bomb."

Grumbling an apology, he leaned back against the controls of the Recognizer.

Sparing a quick glance in his direction, she said, "If this works you'll owe me a thank you as well as Sam."

"Why Sam?"

"He was the one who taught me what I know about computers, programming, hacking, and other random tech stuff. I'm not very good when it comes to hacking, though. Sam's usually around to clean up the mess of my attempts since I tend to screw up. Unfortunately, what I'm doing with your disk is a lot like hacking."

He grimaced. "That's not very reassuring."

"Wasn't meant to be." Sighing, she gritted her teeth when the programming Clu installed once again evaded her. "Get back here," she grumbled under her breath. This was much harder than she thought it would be, and though she wouldn't say it out loud, she was beginning to doubt that she could even do it. Computers in the real world were one thing. This wasn't even in the same ballpark, and the stakes were much more serious if she failed.

A few minutes into it, she wanted to pull out her hair. Once she succeeded and got back home – she tried to remain positive – she'd have to take up yoga or something to learn how to be more calm and patient. She had to wonder if it took Clu this long to repurpose Tron or if it had only taken him seconds. Somehow she couldn't picture him being as patient as she was being.

And then she found it.

The whole thing looked similar to a human's DNA structure. There was the light blue structure that was undoubtedly Tron's original programming, but there was a glowing orange structure that looked almost thread-like and was twined tightly around it, corrupting Tron's programing.

Rinzler.

"Well, I found what I was looking for. Now comes the million dollar question," she muttered, taking a moment to just look at the structure and mess in front of her on the disc. "How do I fix it?"

Moving away from the controls, Tron knelt in front of her, watching what she was doing intently. His staring didn't really help her confidence any but she ignored him and got to work. If she could just find a flaw in the orange sequence she might be able to work from that.

After a few minutes, she finally found that flaw.

Past the middle part of the structure was a small break in the orange that allowed for the light blue to have minor control instead, explaining why Tron still held some aspect of his original programming. If it wasn't for that gap, he might not have retained any semblance of himself.

Holding her breath, she made a pinching gesture at one end of the gap in the orange threadlike sequence and cautiously pulled a little bit. The orange thread followed her fingers, loosening in some areas but tightening in others. "Shit," she hissed. Needing both hands, she set the disk down on the floor and delicately began untangling the mess of light blue and orange. After what felt like an eternity, the orange slowly began to give way to the blue. "Here goes nothing…" With one final pull, the orange sequence of Clu's renegade programming was removed, floating in the air like a orange wisp of mist before disappearing completely from view.

Almost hesitant to ask, Tron looked to Juno. "Did you do it?"

Shrugging, incredibly anxious, she offered the disc back to him. "Only one way to find out."

Grasping his identity disc firmly in his hands, he gave her a long look before returning it to his back, opting to keep the other disc on the floor.

Nothing happened.

Not knowing if that was a good thing or bad, Juno made to get up and check the disc at his back. She was sure that removing what she had removed would work, but maybe she'd missed something. But then his circuitry started flickering from orange to light blue, and then back to orange and so on. Wearing a look of acute discomfort, Tron put his hand to his head, screwing his eyes shut, and dropped to his other knee. If he hadn't have already kneeling, she feared he would have fallen clean over.

Fearing that she'd screwed something up as his circuitry flickered back and forth madly, Juno placed her hands on his broad shoulders. "Tron, what's going on?" Either he wasn't hearing her or he was choosing not to answer, when his circuits finally stopped flickering altogether and went dark. "Tron!"

* * *

_**Coffee keeps me awake to write, but reviews keep me motivated to write!**_


	11. Chapter 11

The moment he returned his identity disc to his back, his system was synced with the altered data.

At first the electrical charge that went through his system was small, but it immediately grew in intensity until it was incredibly painful, forcing him to squeeze his eyes shut and hold his head. His eyes felt like they were being gnawed at by gridbugs, and his circuits were painfully hot to the point where he thought he'd derez altogether. Vaguely he was aware the Juno was holding his shoulders, trying to get him to say something, but he couldn't find words for her. Clu's programming that was already synced with his system was clashing with what Juno had done to his disc, making him feel as though he were in his light-jet, spiraling out of control while ricocheting off of buildings on the way down. It was one of the worst feelings he'd ever experienced, comparable only to when Clu repurposed him which had been far worse than this. And then the pain abruptly ended, becoming nothing more than a memory, and the agony in his eyes subsided a moment later.

Blinking, he slowly opened his eyes saw that the light of his circuitry had dimmed out completely. It was disconcerting to say the least, the lack of illumination usually meaning a Program was on its way to derezzing, but he felt fine now that the pain was gone.

Shaking his head to clear it, he turned his eyes down to his hands when he felt a slight jolt go through his circuits, watching as the light came back to his circuitry. This time, the light remained light blue, and the orange did not return.

"Tron?" Juno asked tentatively, eyes roaming over his face, searching for his eyes. "Are you…you?"

He couldn't answer her, struggling to comprehend what was happening.

For the first time in so many cycles, he didn't have the renegade programming dictating a majority of his actions and clashing with his thoughts, beckoning him to do wrong and follow Clu's commands.

Rinzler was finally gone, and Tron was free.

Reaching out, Tron traced the back of his fingers along the curve of her jaw and along her neck, the circuits on his index and middle finger warming in response to the natural heat of her skin. She tensed under his touch and he realized that she wasn't sure if he was okay or not, whether his touch was that of affection or if he was going to wrap his fingers around her neck and strangle her. The circuitry should be a dead giveaway, but apparently she needed reassurance.

"Thank you," Tron murmured, a smile tugging at the corners of his lips.

Green eyes widening, Juno's smile threatened to reopen the wound on her lip and she threw her arms around his neck, inadvertently knocking him back a bit until she was straddling his lap. Unable to keep the grin off his face, he held her tightly around the waist.

"Told you I could do it," she said, her warm breath washing over his neck.

"You did." Pulling out of her embrace slightly, taking her face in his hands, he frowned when he spotted the tears falling from her eyes. "You're crying. Why?" He didn't understand how she could be upset.

Letting out a breathy laugh, she replied, "Users also cry sometimes when they're happy." Raising her hand, she trailed her fingers lightly over his brow, looking deeply into his eyes. "This color suits you better," she said softly in reference to the change of eye color.

When he'd been repurposed, the color had gone from and intense blue with a silver undertone to a dark reddish orange. Now that Rinzler was gone, he suspected that his eyes had returned to their normal color.

Relieved that he hadn't somehow upset her, he leaned towards her, pausing only a breath away from her lips before kissing her softly.

Threading her fingers through his hair, she deepened the kiss, slanting her lips over his as his arms traveled back down to her waist, holding her tightly. For the first time since meeting her, he wasn't afraid that he would unwillingly hurt her in some way.

Reluctantly breaking the kiss, Juno rested her forehead against his. "Now what do we do?"

That was a good question. With his original programming back in control, his first priority was making sure that Juno got off the Grid with Flynn and Sam. That alone would be difficult as the Solar Sailor Flynn and Sam were on was heading to the carrier ship named _The Rectifier_. After that, Tron would have to take care of Clu. How, he did not know, but he had to protect the Grid.

"For starters, we have to get Flynn and Sam off the Solar Sailer."

Frowning, she asked, "Why? What's so bad about them being on it?" Remembering something, she added, "Oh, there's a Program named Quorra with them. She got injured in the fight at End of the Line."

"Quorra?" He hadn't been aware that the ISO had survived the Purge. Her survival was nothing short of a miracle. "Along with you three, she must get off the Grid as well."

"Why does she need to get off the Grid?"

"She's an ISO."

"Are you serious?" Juno asked, stunned.

"Yes, and she's all the more reason why we need to get them off the Sailor. It leads to Clu's carrier ship, _The Rectifier_. He plans on taking it through the portal to claim your world as his own. Now that he has Flynn's disc, he can do it," he said grimly. With the Creators disc, Clu could do unspeakable things.

"Shit," she murmured. "Okay, what if we don't get to them before they reach the ship?"

Sighing, he answered, "Things become complicated. Either way I'm going to have to get on that ship and take back Flynn's disc, but I'd rather you four be safely on your way to the portal so that I would only have to meet you there." Splaying his hands along her sides and avoiding her eyes, he continued, "Once I get the disc back to Flynn, you all will leave the Grid while I –"

"Wait, hold on a minute," she interrupted, less than happy with what he just said. "You said 'you all will leave the Grid' but I'm sure you meant when '_we_ will leave the Grid', Right?"

Forcing himself to meet her eyes, he shook his head. "No, Juno. I have to stay here."

Speechless, she just stared at him for a long moment. When she found her words, she was angry. "No. _No_! You're coming with us. You have to!"

"I can't. I have to make sure Clu's reign comes to an end and that means that I must remain here." He wanted to go with her more than anything, but he couldn't leave his fellow Programs to lead the life they currently were leading.

"No, there has to be another way. Maybe… maybe we can kill him, derez him, or whatever!"

"It's not that simple to derez him."

"Like hell it isn't!" she snapped sharply, rising to her feet and pacing from side to side. "We get Kevin's disc, you kick Clu's ass, and we all go home to my world. Simple as that."

"Juno…" Standing, he stopped her from pacing, taking hold of her arms. "I fought Clu when he betrayed Flynn, and I lost. He's grown more powerful since then. If I'm going to fight him I will have to gather as many Programs as I can to stand against him. That means that _I __have __to stay_."

Trembling, Juno met his eyes, hers filling with tears that she refused to let fall. "So that's it? You kiss me a couple of times, act like I'm special, and then once you're you again you just decide to send me on my way and get back to work?"

He blinked, not expecting her to bring that into the argument as it had nothing to do with what they were talking about.

"This has nothing to do with that, Juno. Nothing to do with us, and you know it."

Pulling free from him, she turned her back to him and leaned against the far side of the Recognizer. "Whatever. It's my own fault that I'm upset anyways. Should have known that falling for a Program would have a bad ending to it. I just… I just assumed you'd be coming back with us. Stupid, huh?" she asked with a humorless laugh.

"You couldn't have known that I'd be unable to go with you," Tron said quietly, coming up to stand behind her. It hurt to hear and see her angry and upset, but going back with her to her world was something he could not do. His place was on the Grid.

"But I shouldn't have made such a crazy assumption." Shaking her head and glancing back at him, she muttered, "You'd better see to getting us to Kevin and Sam."

Sighing, he backed away from her, giving her the space she needed, and went back to the controls, forcing back his desire to go to the User world with her and the others.

* * *

Juno half wanted to strangle Tron. She might be acting childish, but it wasn't fair. It wasn't fair for her to find Tron, who had already claimed a piece of her heart in the short time they'd spent together, only to be forced to give him up. There was something wrong about that. She could see his reasoning for claiming he had to stay, could even agree with him to a certain point, and she wasn't afraid to admit that she'd been wrong in bringing whatever they had between them into the argument when it had no place in it, but she didn't like him staying behind in the slightest and hadn't cared what she said.

Sparing a look at Tron, she sighed.

They hadn't spoken a word to each over for a good while, both wanting to give the other their space. She imagined that it would take him a while to get use to being Tron again fully, and she needed time to sort through her emotions. She really needed to push them aside so that she could concentrate on getting to the others. That, like so many things, was easier said than done.

Several yards ahead, Juno saw a square-like tube in the sky that reminded her of a train. Stepping over to Tron, she asked, "Is that the Solar Sailer?"

"Yes." Increasing the speed, he brought the Recognizer along side it before speeding ahead. "We're too late."

"What do you mean?"

Answering for her was a reddish orange glow among the clouds as the Sailer ventured into them. Such strange clouds… but then she realized it wasn't the clouds that were glowing, but a massive ship. It was _The Rectifier_. That was what Tron meant by they were too late.

"We have to get on that ship," she declared, not taking her eyes off the ship.

"I agree," he replied. "But you will have to follow my lead and do as I say. I will no longer be seen as one of Clu's Programs. We'll have to be careful." He stared at her pointedly when he said the last part.

"What?" Frowning, she insisted, "I know how to be careful."

"That's yet to be proven," he muttered, bringing the Recognizer into _The Rectifier_.

Choosing to ignore his comment about how careful she was, she tensed upon seeing what had to be hundreds of Black Guards. Thankfully, Tron's ship was still orange and blended in well enough. Once the got off, however, they would stick out like sore thumbs, as would Sam, Kevin, and Quorra. She would have to trust that Tron would lead them safely through the ship.

The Recognizer landing softly, the deck lowering them to the ground level, Tron took Juno's hand and pulled her with him as he darted to cover near the Solar Sailer. Looking around to be sure that they were not being watched, he knelt on the ground and locked his fingers together. Not needing to be told what to do, Juno accepted his help and climbed up onto the Sailer, thankful for the boost Tron gave her, her petite height making the climb a bit difficult. Climbing over the edge and hastily moving to the center, she jumped down to the walkway below, wincing when her bad leg took the force of the landing. Tron followed shortly after, jumping up onto the Sailer with the ease of a master gymnast and landed smoothly beside her.

"Show off," she muttered.

Paying no attention to the remark, focused on the task at hand, he led her down the walkway, stopping and peering around the exits before continuing on.

Scanning the area, she nearly jumped out of her skin when the large crate-like structures on either side of her became illuminated, revealing dozens upon dozens of Programs. With her hands on the glass, she stared inside. "Tron?..."

"They're to be repurposed to serve in Clu's Black Guard." Laying his hand on her shoulder, he said, "There's nothing we can do for them, Juno. We have to find the others."

Swallowing the lump in her throat, she nodded, tearing her eyes away from the helpless Programs. Clu was going to pay for this.

Making her way down the walkway, she began calling out in a near whisper, "Sam? Mr. Flynn? Quorra? Where are you?" There was no reply and she kept repeating, desperately hoping they hadn't been caught. And then she caught a flash of movement near one of the exits, a figure disappearing that was too small to be Sam or Kevin. "Quorra!"

A dark haired Program poked her head out from the exit, icy gray eyes widening in surprise. "Juno! Sam, Flynn, its Juno!"

Rushing towards her, Sam came within a few feet of her, a relieved smile on his face, but he quickly slowed and the smile faded when he caught sight of Tron standing behind her.

Quorra, unaware that Tron had once been Rinzler, looked at him in shock. "You're alive! But I thought Clu derez you many cycles ago!"

"I managed to escape and went into hiding, aiding some of the factions against Clu," he replied with a straight face.

Juno stared up at him. Why had he lied to Quorra? Before she could say anything about it, an aging man stepped out from behind Sam and Quorra, staring at Tron in amazement.

"Tron," Kevin began, stepping towards his old friend. "I was sure that Clu had derezzed you."

Bowing his head out of respect, Tron said, "He nearly did. It's good to see you again, Flynn."

Grinning, the old man clasped Tron's shoulder. "It's good to see you, too, buddy."

"Yeah, we're all happy to see _Tron_," Sam sighed, putting too much emphasis in his name. "Can we find a way off this thing?"

"Sam!" Juno snapped at his rudeness and his father turned less than appreciative eyes on him as well.

Tron seemed to take no offense. "He's right. We don't have much time left to get your disc."

Frowning, Kevin asked, "What do you mean?"

"Clu discovered how to take this entire ship through the portal a many cycles ago. Since then he's been building an army to take with him back to your world. Having already taken control of the Grid, he now desires to control yours. All he needed was your disc, and now he has it."

"Wouldn't half the stuff that exists here on the Grid not work in our world?" Juno asked, looking from Tron to Kevin.

Stroking his gray beard once, Kevin replied, "No. Every ship, light-jet, light-cycle, and so on works in relatively the same way as planes and motorcycles in our world, they're just more complex and dangerous. Theoretically, everything here would work in exactly the same fashion in our world."

"Including the Programs?" Sam questioned.

Looking to his son, he nodded. "Yes, including the Programs. I don't know how our world will affect their systems, though. When hit with a fatal blow, they might derez into shards of code, or they might bleed like you and me. I don't know." He sighed, shaking his head. "But figuring that out isn't important right now."

"Agreed," Tron said. "I know where to find your disc, but you'll need to leave the moment I get it to you. We'll have to split up to find transport to the portal."

Catching what Tron said, just as Juno had on the Recognizer, Kevin asked, "You aren't coming with us?"

"No."

"Why?"

Answering for him, Juno bit out, "He won't come because he wants to stay behind and take on Clu."

Glaring at her, Tron said tightly, "Those weren't the words I used. I can't allow Clu to rule over the Grid. You understand, Flynn?"

"No, I don't actually," Kevin replied, voice firm and lacking approval. "You fight for the Users, correct?"

Tron nodded. "Yes."

"You want to protect us, correct?"

Another nod.

"Then tell me, how does sending us off alone to the portal ensures our safety? Let's say Clu sends out light-jets to apprehend us. What then? We ask them nicely to leave us alone?" he asked, crossing his arms.

Tron hesitated to answer and Juno wanted to kick herself. Why hadn't she thought of pulling that card with Tron on the Recognizer?

With a resigned sigh, Tron said, "I'll accompany you all to the portal, but understand that I must stay behind when you four go through."

"Tron, no…" Juno began, turning towards him, missing the knowing look she received from Kevin Flynn.

"We've had this discussion, Juno," Tron sighed, keeping his expression void of any revealing emotion while his silvery blue eyes expressed his regret for it having to be that way.

Stepping into their conversation, Kevin said, "We'll cross that bridge when we get to it. For now, let's focus on getting my disc."

Not liking Kevin's vague reply about his staying there but ignoring it, Tron said, "Clu's command ship should be arriving soon. With him is the disc. As soon as he disembarks I'll make my way up to his ship and retrieve the disc. The rest of you find some sort of transport."

"All right," Kevin agreed. "But take Sam with you."

"What?" Sam exclaimed. "Dad…"

"Sam, with the two of you working together I know for sure that I'll get my disc back. Just do as I say. Quorra, Juno, and I will handle getting us a ship."

Gritting his teeth, unhappy with the partnering, Sam nodded.

Though she was angry with how he was acting around Tron, Juno couldn't really blame Sam. He had a stubborn streak a mile wide and had been deeply angered by what Clu did to Tron. To some extent, he probably blamed Tron for the things he'd done as Rinzler. It would take Sam time to get over it. He could do without being rude, though.

"Let's move out," Tron ordered and they split up into two groups.

Biting her lip, she called to Tron's back, "Tron…" When he looked at her over his shoulder she gave him a small half smile. "Be safe."

A smile tugged at his lips, remembering that he had used those words when leaving her at his apartment. "You too, Juno."

* * *

_**Coffee keeps me awake to write, but reviews keep me motivated to write!**_


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: _This isn't the last chapter to this story, but I have a question about the sequel that will be coming shortly after the final chapter. _**

_**I can either list this story **_**"Tron: Salvation" _as complete once I finish the final chapter and publish the sequel as a new story (not sure what I'll call it yet). Or, I can continue _"Tron: Salvation" _with the sequel attached to it, at which point I will title the first chapter of the sequel as Part Two._**

_**I would appreciate it if you could all tell me which you'd prefer.**_

* * *

"He really is full of himself," Juno commented, watching Clu give his speech from behind the corner she, Quorra, and Kevin were hiding behind.

Kevin nodded. "He always did like listening to himself talk." Glancing around, he added, "Come on. There are some multi-passenger light-jets this way."

Falling into step beside him, Quorra keeping an eye on their backs, they carefully picked their way through the maze, avoiding the Black Guard as much as possible.

"I don't understand why Sam was so rude to Tron," Quorra commented, brow furrowed in confusion.

"Nor do I," Kevin agreed. "As a kid, Tron was his hero. I don't understand what changed."

Juno bit down on her tongue. What she didn't understand was why Tron lied to Kevin. He had a right to know. Looking at the man who was the closest thing she had to a father, she debated on telling him. Was it really her place to do so without Tron's permission? Probably not.

"You okay, honey?" the old man asked, concerned by her sudden down demeanor.

She sighed. He needed to know. "I think I know why Sam's angry."

Intrigued, he said, "Go on."

Taking a deep breath, she said to both him and Quorra, "You know of Rinzler, right?"

Both nodded.

Looking back at Quorra, she asked, "Do you remember what his suit looked like?"

"Yes, it had limited orange circuitry and he always wore a helmet. Why do you ask?"

"Didn't you ever notice a specific symbol on his chest?"

The ISO thought back for a moment, searching her memory for a connection between Rinzler and Tron. And then her gray eyes widened and she looked at Juno in disbelief. "Oh, no…"

"Yeah," Juno sighed.

"Oh, no _what_?" Kevin demanded, irritated that he was left out of the loop.

Swallowing, she explained the painful truth. "Tron lied to you back there. He didn't escape when he fought Clu. He… Clu repurposed him, turning him into Rinzler, his very own personal enforcer."

A look of denial swept over Kevin's face, bringing him to a halt. "No… no, that's not possible."

"It is, Mr. Flynn. I spent a great deal of time with him while he still had Clu's programming." Gesturing to her bruised and cut face, she added, "All this happened in the light-cycle arena. He was trying to recapture Sam after Quorra came and got him. I bought them some time by running my light-cycle into Tron's – though I guess I should call him Rinzler, because that's who he sort of was at the time."

Kevin raised his hand to his mouth, shaking his head. "I don't believe it." Sighing, he leaned back against a wall for support. "No wonder he lied to me. The guy probably thinks he failed me somehow by being repurposed. And that would explain why Sam's angry."

"How?" Quorra asked curiously.

Looking at the ISO for a moment, he then looked back at Juno. "You loved Tron as a kid, thought he was your hero, a knight in light-suit armor." He chuckled a bit.

She blushed a little. "I was a little girl. Every girl wanted a hero. I know I annoyed Marcus to no end when I would talk about your stories of Tron religiously."

"Your brother liked the stories but he thought that was all they were; stories."

"That's because he was older than both me and Sam."

"True." Getting back to Sam, he continued, "You might have believed that Tron was your hero, but Sam worshiped him beyond the point of considering him a hero. He thought that Tron was perfect, that nothing could harm him. At least in your make-believe stories he got hurt once in a while. Sam got mad if the damn action figure got dusty."

Both women were silent for a moment, Quorra taking all this in, and Juno remembering.

Eyes far off, Juno said quietly, "Once in a while we'd talk about the Grid. Even now, he would claim that nothing could hurt Tron. He'd always say it while we were joking around, but I guess in some way he still believed that."

"So," Quorra began slowly. "He's angry because Tron is not what he expected?"

"In a sense, yes." Kevin nodded. "As you said, Juno, Tron was repurposed. That means he isn't perfect. But if that's why Sam's cranky then that means all he needs is a reality check. He and Tron are similar in that way." Seeing Juno and Quorra stare at him in question, he said, "When Tron discovered I was a User he assumed that I had a plan for everything, that nothing for Users was chaotic. The poor guy was more than a little disappointed when I proved otherwise. But he got over it. I think that made him respect us even more."

She could believe that. Tron certainly seemed to hold a great deal of respect for Users. She could only hope that Sam would follow his example and gain new respect for him soon. "Tron's been through enough shit already," she said to Kevin, shaking her head. "He doesn't need Sam riding his ass."

Kevin gave her a long look before glancing at Quorra. "Can you give us a minute? Scout out ahead and see if there's a safe path to the ships."

Cocking her head in wonder at why he was asking for privacy, she respected his request and walked away, leaving behind a slightly nervous Juno.

When they were alone, he asked, "How did you fix Tron's programming? Stuff like that isn't an easy fix unless you're used to doing it."

"I had him give me his disc on the way here and I sat down for a good while to work on it. It's hard to explain, but I picked my way through certain codes and sequences, avoiding some of the fail-safes Clu left behind, and after finding the problem in his core programming I removed it." She shrugged. "Think of holographic hacking and that's pretty much what it was like."

He chuckled. "Yeah, that's basically what it is."

Smiling a bit, she stepped away to look through one of the view ports at the Sea of Simulation. It wasn't as pretty as she thought it would be. As the seconds faded, so did her smile.

"He was aware the whole time, Mr. Flynn. He couldn't do anything but obey Clu. It took him finding a loophole just to give me the means to escape his custody." Recalling the time they spent together, she went on. "Before the arena, he warned me about the light-cycles and the light-ribbons. After I ran my bike into his, he made sure I was tended to. That was when Clu lied and said I would be used as bait against Sam and you. Under orders, Tron took me with him to his apartment to watch me. We must have talked for well over an hour because… we finally started getting under each others skin. I didn't understand how Clu's renegade enforcer could be so gentle and nice. The helmet he always wore hid his face from everyone and when I asked him to take it off he said that he didn't take it off for anyone. I couldn't understand why. But then he told me that I didn't deserve to be lied to and he removed the helmet. At first I was a confused by why he looked like a young and hot version of Alan, but… then it clicked. Rinzler was Tron. He got a little irritated when I kept insisting that he was still Tron. I just couldn't and wouldn't accept that he was Rinzler, at least not fully. He was too good to me to be Rinzler." She laughed lightly. "I actually started crying when he claimed he couldn't change his programming."

"You said Clu lied about you being bait. Why?"

Jaw tensing in anger, she answered, "He noticed that Tron acted different around me and put us in a situation where we'd be together for a while. He wanted to see if Tron was still around and just how much control he had. Clu got some of his answer when he, well, uh, when he walked in on Tron and me kissing."

After a few seconds of staring her, he gave her a fatherly smile and patted the wall beside him. "Come here, Juno."

Walking over, she leaned back beside him.

Turning his head to look at her, he stated rather than asked, "You like him."

She blushed, not needing to know what he meant by 'like'. Casting her eyes to the floor, she admitted, "Yeah, I do. And that makes him deciding not to come with us hard to take."

"He's not like Quorra. Unlike her, he's a Basic Program. While she has free will just like you and me and can do whatever she wants in here, he doesn't have real free will and can't just throw his programming out the window. At least not to the same extent. He'll follow his programming even if he doesn't like it. And from what I saw when we were discussing his plan of not coming with us, he doesn't like the idea of leaving you one bit." Smirking, he added, "From what I can tell, I think you mean more to him than Yori did. It's a shame Clu killed her killed her, though. She was a good person."

"How'd you know he killed her?"

"Word travels fast."

Swallowing, she said, "He said he loved her once. I assume he knew her for longer than he's known me, so I don't see how I could mean more to him."

"Trust me, sweetheart," Kevin began with a knowing look. "I caught how he looked at you. He didn't look at Yori that way."

She had to smile a little at that but it faded as tears threatened to come back. "I want him to come with us, Mr. Flynn."

Sighing, he put his arm around her shoulders and pulled her in for a comforting hug. "I know, sweetheart. I know." Kissing the top of her head, he changed the subject. "And when are you going to quit with the 'Mr. Flynn' business? It makes me feel old."

She laughed, happy for the topic change. "I don't know. It's a polite habit." Biting her lip, she added, "You know, Sam wasn't the only one depressed over you disappearing. You were always a dad to me. I think Marcus and I spent more time with you and Sam than with did with our own mother at times."

"Sometimes, I think you did," he agreed, smiling. "How's your mom doing anyways?"

Juno's throat tightened painfully. "Mom died four years ago. She, uh, she'd already retired from the Air Force, but she was asked to come help with a teaching exercise. She was only supposed to be gone for a few hours, but the helicopter's engine malfunctioned in the air, and she and five others were killed."

Kevin closed his eyes, shaking his head, and held her tighter. "I'm so sorry, Juno."

"It's okay. It took me a while, but I got over it," she assured him. "I think what made me take it so hard was that I didn't have any parents left, and if felt like my family was leaving me one by one, including you. You're the closest thing I have to a father."

"You and Marcus might be related to me, but you were always my kids." He sighed. "I don't think he felt the same about the whole thing, though."

"I don't remember my father at all since he died when I was one, but Marcus was eight. By then I think it was almost impossible to fill that gap completely. Alan had a hard to being a surrogate father to Sam after you disappeared," she said sadly, taking comfort in the familiar hug. "Marcus was able to keep going without too much trouble. I managed with just my mom, but it was hard. It was like my family broke or something."

"I told Sam this, and I will tell you, too," he began. "I would have given anything for one more day with the two of you. I love the both of you very much."

Juno had to squeeze her eyes shut to keep from crying. "I love you, too, Kevin."

* * *

Looking past Tron and up towards the Clu's command ship, Sam asked, "So what's the plan?"

Going over the layout of the ship in his head, Tron replied, "We split up. You take the main entrance and distract the Black Guards while I get to the front of the ship and grab Flynn's disc."

"I'll get my dad's disc," Sam said tightly, already walking forward.

Tron sighed.

Since splitting up from Juno, Flynn, and Quorra, Sam had had been strangely hostile towards him. Knowing and understanding that it had a lot to do with him having been Rinzler, he let some of the boy's anger slide. But now that Sam was altering the plan, he had to speak up.

"Is there something you would like to get off your chest, Sam?" he questioned, stopping in his tracks.

Slowing to a stop, Sam let out a long sigh. "Yeah, actually." Fixing a glare onto him, he demanded, "Why did you lie to my father?"

Thinking of how best to answer, he answered his question with a question of his own. "If you had been forced to terrorize your own kind and follow the orders of a deranged leader, would you want to tell Flynn?"

"No," Sam admitted. "But I wouldn't have lied to his face."

"You say that now, but when faced with the situation you might find yourself thinking differently."

Eyes narrowing, he replied, "I wouldn't let myself get repurposed in the first place."

"It was me or your father, Sam Flynn," Tron replied, fighting to keep his composure. "Getting repurposed was not something I wanted, but your father was more important that what I wanted."

Running his hand over the back of his neck, Sam paced around a bit, mulling over something in his head. "How could that happen to you anyways?"

Tron didn't follow. "What do you mean?"

"You're Tron," Sam said simply, as though his meaning were obvious. "My dad told me stories about you."

"I'm the same as any other Program. I can be repurposed and derezzed just as others can."

"I guess," Sam grumbled. "It's just… as stupid as it sounds I thought you were unable to be hurt. As a kid, that was what I always believe. The reality that you're just a Program is, well, disappointing."

A memory from his past came to his mind and Tron smirked, shaking his head. At one point he'd considered the Users to be gods. Flynn proved otherwise, proving that they were imperfect. In a sense, knowing that gave Tron more respect for them. As imperfect as Users were, they could do unbelievable things and had a determination and will that Programs didn't have. It seemed like Sam had had some of the same expectations for him as he'd had for the Users.

"Reality often pales in comparison to the dream," Tron stated, receiving a wry smirk from Sam.

"So I've gathered. Juno and I wanted to come here so bad as kids and thought it would be… well, we thought it would be different. The light-cycles are better than I imagined, but I think the only thing here that has lived up to Juno's dreams is you." Sighing, he looked at Tron and said almost reluctantly, "She cares about you, you know."

Looking around to be sure they weren't being watched, he nodded. "Yes, I know."

"You staying here will break her heart."

He said nothing.

That was something he already knew and he dreaded the time when he would have to leave her at the portal. It was likely that he would never see her again. Perhaps that was for the best. But despite all his reasoning, he wanted to join her, to discover what her world was like, stay with her and learn more about her.

That was out of the question and he couldn't afford to keep thinking about going with Juno. If only forgetting her and staying on the Grid was as easy as it sounded.

* * *

_**Coffee keeps me awake to write, but reviews keep me motivated to write!**_


	13. Chapter 13

Standing beside the large light-ship they'd acquired, Juno forced herself to stand still, worried about how long it was taking Sam and Tron to return with the disc. Granted she knew that it wouldn't be an easy thing to do, but still. With those two working together they should have been back by now. By the sound of Quorra tapping her foot and Kevin's quiet muttering for the two to hurry up, she wasn't the only one worried.

Looking at Kevin sitting in the copilot's seat and Quorra sitting opposite him at the controls, she had to wonder just how all of them were going to fit in the light-jet. With only one other seat available, two of them would either be sitting cramped on the floor or would have to find another means of transportation. If they ran into trouble, she'd rather not be helplessly sitting on the floor.

"Come on," Kevin murmured, eyes locked on the command ship high above. "Come on, guys."

They needed to hurry. Kevin might have been able to reprogram the Black Guard standing watch over the light-jet, but others would likely take notice of them shortly.

As if sensing their urgency, the main view port of Clu's ship shattered as two figures jumped out, much to Juno and Quorra's horror.

"What are they doing? They won't make it!" the ISO exclaimed, looking helplessly from Juno to Kevin then back up at Tron and Sam.

A second later, two sets of wing-like parachutes appeared behind the two and eased their decent. Sam landed first in what looked like a painful roll while Tron landed on his feet, stumbling only slightly.

"Hurry!" Kevin shouted and the two ran towards them.

When they got close enough, Juno looked at Sam with a smile. "Quorra didn't think you guys would make it."

Giving the ISO a wry smirk, he said, "Made it."

Grinning at their private joke, Quorra indicated for Sam to get into the middle seat, and that left Juno and Tron in a predicament.

The others realized the problem and looked around them, searching for a way to make room for the pair. Because of Juno's small size, it would be possible for her to squeeze in on the floor, but Tron would have more trouble. She wasn't going anywhere without Tron, that was for certain.

"Juno," Tron began, snapping her out of her thoughts. "Do you still have the baton I gave you?"

Remembering about the devise, she reached down to her thigh and unhooked the baton. "Yeah."

"Good." Looking at the others, he said, "Get out of here. We'll be right behind you."

With a nod, Kevin indicated for Quorra to take them up and seconds later they were on their way out.

Holding the baton in her hand, Juno asked tentatively, "How exactly do you handle a light-jet?"

"Think of it as a flying light-cycle."

"Somehow I don't think they're similar," she grumbled. Either way, she'd have to learn how to fly one fast.

Pulling her towards the edge of the center of _The Rectifier_, Tron gave her a questioning look.

She really didn't like the idea of jump, but since there really wasn't any choice, she swallowed and gave him a nod. Tron dove off the edge, and after taking a deep breath, Juno followed, jumping and plummeting downward.

Adrenaline made thinking nearly impossible but upon looking to Tron and seeing him twist apart his baton, she remembered what to do and twisted the baton until it split at the center. Just as the light-cycle materialized, the light-jet came to be in the air, its seat shaping to her figure to hold her perfectly. The moment it finished forming and her helmet came over her head, it lurched forward, its force and speed jolting her senses. It wasn't exactly the same as a light-cycle, but it was a lot like using some of the games at arcades, minus the jolt.

Coming up beside her, helmet hiding his face, Tron shouted, "Are you all right?"

"Yeah. This reminds me of some games in my world," she replied loudly. "You lead, I'll follow."

Giving a quick nod, he shot forward to flank the larger light-jet's left while she went to its right.

So far, so good.

Inside the large light-jet, Kevin and the others glanced at each of them, offering them both a smile. But she noticed that the smile quickly disappeared from Quorra's face as the ISO looked over her shoulder at something behind them. Frowning, Juno did the same, looking back to see what the problem was. Far off in the distance behind them six glowing dots, five bright orange and one yellow. She didn't have to ask what they were and cursed under her breath.

Clu wanted that disc back and they were gaining on them fast.

Tron's light-ribbon turned on along with Quorra's so Juno did the same, flicking hers on. Unsure of what else to do, she looked over at Tron, watching what he was doing so that she could follow his lead. Abruptly he turned his light-jet skyward, flipping back the way they'd come and attacking the Black Guard and Clu head on. She was about to go help him out when she heard some sort or weapon firing from beside her. It was Sam, now at the back of the light-jet using what looked like a turret or something. She had to smirk. That was his kind of weapon.

Clu and the Black Guard swarmed them like bees and Juno found herself spinning just to stay out of the hale of weapons fire coming at her. One of the enemy light-jets broke off from the others and gunned toward her abruptly.

Forced to split from the others, she weaved her way around some of the obstacles in her path, not chancing a glance behind her to see who was chasing her for fear that she'd hit something.

Whoever was on her ass was certainly intent on taking her out of the sky.

* * *

Through the bright flash of the explosion of one of the Black Guard's light-jets, Tron saw a yellow light-ribbon far ahead and instantly knew it was Clu. What nearly made him made him swerve into Quorra's light-ribbon, however, was the sight of Juno mere feet from Clu. He was tailing her, dodging her light-ribbon with ease and narrowly missing her when he fired upon her.

Forgetting about the other Black Guard, he accelerated towards Clu and Juno. With Clu's baton being heavily modified, Tron had to put everything he had into getting near them. The only reason Juno was able to keep ahead of him was probably because she was pulling tight turns left and right around obstacles at the last minute, causing Clu to take an alternate coarse.

When Clu was within range, Tron opened fire but missed, his former leader dropping out of the way. But to his surprise, he didn't leave or attempt to come up behind him.

Clu came up right _beside _him.

Throwing a quick look in his direction, Clu shouted angrily, "I knew I should have killed her when I had the chance, _Tron_!"

"Flynn was always the smart one," Tron retorted, attempting to ram his light-jet into Clu's.

"It's better this way, though," Clu replied, dodging the light-jet. "You ever heard of the saying 'an eye for an eye'?"

Tron didn't reply.

"Flynn taught it to me. But instead of an eye, think of it this way; you and the boy took something important from me, now I'm going to take something important from you!"

Suddenly Clu's light-jet shot forward, gunning directly towards Juno.

They took the disc… now Clu was going to kill Juno.

"Juno!" Tron shouted as loud as he could, desperate to get her attention.

Just barely hearing him despite the distance, Juno looked back for a split second. That was all the time she needed to spot Clu behind her and go into a sharp arch upwards and back towards the others.

At first the action didn't make sense to Tron, but then he took notice of Sam at the turret and took a guess that she was trying to get close enough to the back so that she'd have cover and that Clu would be at risk for getting shot down no matter where he was.

But Clu was smart. Spotting the dilemma, Clu spun his light-jet up between the large light-jet's twin ribbons and opened fire. Sparks erupted from the turret and Juno was forced to break away to avoid being shot down in the chaos.

With the renegade Program focused on the others, Juno brought her light-jet next to Tron's and she shouted desperately, "What do we do?"

He didn't know, he really didn't know. Thinking fast as the Quorra dropped the light-jet into a roll, he went over different options in his head. There weren't many. One, however, stood out from all the rest as he recalled how Juno had run her light-cycle into his in order to buy the others time. He'd survived it because he always carried an extra baton and was able to get another light-cycle up by the time he landed.

Just as before, there was a spare baton on his leg.

He was well aware that there was a chance that the collision would cause him to derez because these vehicles weren't light-cycles. If he crashed, he could shatter into shards of code, or if he went inactive for too long the impact of hitting the water below might make him derez. There were a lot of ifs, but none of them mattered. This was his chance to atone for what he'd done under Clu's control and he'd be following his original programming in the process. But he doubted Juno would see it that way.

"Juno," Tron began, keeping his voice calm. "No matter what happens, I want you to keep following the others. Don't come after me."

Instantly she was on edge, the young woman demanded, "What are you talking about? What are you going to do?"

"I'm going to crash me light-jet into Clu's. I have a spare baton so I should be able to activate another light-jet before reaching the water."

"Should?" she repeated incredulously. "No, you said the stunt I pulled was insane! You can't do it, it's too risky!"

"There's no other way!" he shouted back a little too harshly. Softening his tone, he added, "Please, trust me, Juno."

Looking away from him, Juno stared straight ahead. He could only imagine what she was thinking.

With a slight shake of her head, she looked back at him. "Promise me you'll be careful."

"I promise." And he would try. Not knowing what else to say to her, he broke away and dove towards Clu.

The closer he got the more certain he became that this would not end well. He would gladly derez for the Users, but it wasn't his goal. It might be easier to derez though. Going on without Juno wasn't something his was looking forward to doing. His wants were put aside by his programming and that was something that couldn't change.

Setting his jaw, he accelerated towards Clu.

It was now or never.

Almost to himself, Tron said, "I fight for the Users."

Too late, Clu noticed what Tron was doing and failed to pull back before their light-jets collided in an explosion of blue and yellow.

* * *

If she gripped the controls any harder, Juno was sure that she would crush them.

Tensely, she stared over her shoulder at the explosion of the light-jets. She easily spotted Clu falling, his yellow circuitry making him stand out in the darkness, but she couldn't see Tron. He blended too well. Fearing the worst but needing to be sure, she turned her light-jet around to search for him. He'd told her not to come after him, but she wasn't a soldier and wasn't bound to follow his orders. Even though she'd told him that she wouldn't come after him, she couldn't just follow the others without being sure.

Flying high above Clu, she scanned the area, searching for Tron's circuitry. Out of the corner of her eye, movement caught her attention. Against the dark background, she saw the faint dots of familiar light blue circuitry, and she knew that it was Tron.

For a moment, she felt relief, but the closer she got the more she noticed that something wasn't right. He was falling with his back facing the water. Sam knew more about skydiving, but she was fairly certain that that was not how one was suppose to fall. It occurred to her that he might be unconscious – inactive or whatever – and she tried not to panic as she neared him. Seconds ticked by like hours but he suddenly turned in the air and she knew that he'd come to. Relief didn't find her though. Instead, what she felt was horror, because just as he'd flipped over, Clu dove toward him.

"Tron, look out!" she shouted.

But he couldn't hear her.

Less than a second after Tron pulled the baton from his leg Clu slammed into him and the two began desperately fighting for the device.

"No, no, no," she repeated to herself over and over, diving towards the two Programs. She had to do… something. She didn't know what she could do, but she had to help.

Holding onto the baton by one hand, Tron hit Clu with the other. Clu had the advantage, however, and gripped the baton tightly with both hands and angled his body so that he could kick at the other Program, trying to make him lose his grip. A few kicks hit Tron in the chest but he still refused to let go of the lifeline.

On her light-jet, Juno's fingers flexed over the triggers, but she never pulled the trigger. If she fired on Clu, she would hit Tron as well.

And then it happened.

Clu landed a solid kick to Tron's head and he released the baton to Clu as he fell towards the Sea of Simulation.

"No!" Juno screamed, forgetting about Clu as he activated the light-jet and shot past her. He was the least of her concerns because a moment after he flew by her, Tron hit the water. Hard.

Over a rock of some kind near the spot Tron landed, Juno deactivated her light-jet and fell the few feet to the rock, yelping when her bad leg buckled. Crawling to the edge, she peered into the dark water – or energy, she didn't know if it was really water or not – and frantically searched as her heart pounded in her chest. She couldn't see him. There were random spots of glowing white circuitry all over the place. With his black light-suit and light blue circuitry, Tron was practically invisible.

"Tron?" she cried, half tempted to get in the water to look for him. But what good would that do? With her bad leg she wouldn't be able to swim very well. Tears blurring her vision, she called his name again as panic set in. This couldn't be happening. He'd promised that he would be careful. This wasn't being careful!

It had been a long time since she felt like this – like everyone was leaving her. Old, unwanted memories shot forward. Kevin disappearing, her mother's funeral, her brother always leaving, the drinking, the drugs, everything came back and she choked on a sob. They might have found Kevin, but the memory of the disappearance was still there. She couldn't go through all of that again. She couldn't lose Tron.

"Tron… _please_," she cried, voice barely above a whisper. She sat back on the rock, pulling her knees up to her chest. She should be following after the others, but she couldn't bring herself to budge. Couldn't make herself stand as tears streamed down her cheeks. All she could do was stare at the water.

Watching the spot where he'd disappeared as best as she could through the blur her tears caused, she swore she saw something. Wiping her eyes with the back of her hand, she leaned over the edge of the rock as far as she could, struggling to see if she was crazy or if something – someone – had moved.

She got her answer a second later when Tron broke the surface, his helmet retracting.

Feeling something beyond relief, she shouted, "Tron! Here!"

Twisting to face her, he kicked at the water until he was close enough to grab her outstretched hand.

Careful not to fall in with him, she helped pull him up onto the rock and out of the water. Not noticing that she too was now wet, she threw her arms around him tightly.

"I though you were dead," she cried, shoulders shaking.

His arms going about her waist, he said after several deep breaths, "So did I for a while." Shaking his head, he pulled back and frowned. "Where's Clu?"

Eyes widening, she rose to her feet and Tron followed her example. "On his way to the portal. He's probably already there."

Tron ran his hand through his wet hair. "I don't have another baton."

Walking over to where she'd dropped it, Juno picked up the baton he'd given to her and held it out for him to take. "Think two can fit on it?"

A half smile tugged at his lips. "We can find out."

Taking the baton from her, he activated it while stationary on the rock. The result was an inactive light-jet. Why Programs didn't activate them this way confused Juno but she didn't ask questions and got on the machine behind Tron as best as she could and held on tightly to his waist. And not a moment too soon. As soon as she was on, Tron propelled the light-jet forward and the force nearly made them her lose her grip and her head suddenly ached. That must be why they jumped first.

* * *

There wasn't much time.

Juno was most likely right about Clu already being at the portal and that meant the others were in danger. Unfortunately, the light-jet wasn't as fast as it should have been because two were riding it and maneuverability was limited since a too complicated move could throw Juno off. Keeping her safety in mind, Tron was exceedingly careful in piloting the light-jet. Little by little, the light from the portal grew brighter as they drew closer.

The landing platform came into view at last and he saw the large light-jet that Quorra had been flying. Carefully, he brought their light-jet down for a hard landing, both stumbling as it deactivated under them.

Looking back at Juno and noticing that her hand was on her left leg, Tron asked, "You all right?"

She nodded with a smirk. "After riding those, no game is ever going to be the same."

He returned her smirk with a slight smile and grabbed her by the hand. "Come on."

Hastily, they ran towards the stairs, the young woman managing to keep up despite her bad leg.

As the neared the top, Tron heard Sam shout in anger.

A feeling of dread washed over him and he released Juno's hand, running faster up the steps just as Clu threw Sam towards the portal. The boy landed with a hard thud, nearly rolling over the edge. On the ground in front of Tron was Flynn, Quorra kneeling next to him.

Without a second glance, Tron ran at Clu, removing his disc from his back.

Clu was clearly surprised to find him still alive and he swung at Tron, enraged, and dodged the security Program's disc whenever it came at him.

Over his shoulder, Tron shouted to Quorra and Juno, "Get Flynn to the portal!"

Doing as he said, the two women helped Flynn to his feet and edged past while Tron kept Clu busy at the very edge of the ramp. He needed to buy the others enough time to get in the portal and off the Grid. Getting derezzed wouldn't buy them anything but a death sentence. Ducking under Clu's attack, Tron put himself between him and the others, forcing the deranged Program back towards the stairs. There was little chance of him defeating Clu, but if he could keep him away just long enough for the others to make an escape, his death would at least have meaning.

"Tron!" Juno shouted, unmasked desperation and panic in her voice.

Distracted, wondering what the source of her sudden desperation was, he looked over his shoulder at her. The walkway had retracted, leaving a very large gap between him and the others. He might be able to make the jump, but he couldn't go with them even though he wanted to.

Diverting his eyes from the gap, Tron looked sorrowfully at Juno.

The meaning of his look got through to her and she started fighting against Sam, Quorra, and Flynn. "No! Tron, come on! Come with us!"

He couldn't afford to answer, falling to the ground to avoid one of Clu's attacks, swinging at his feet. Clu jumped, dodging the disc that came at his ankles. Jumping to his feet, Tron landed a hard kick to Clu's chest, sending the Program backwards several feet towards the staircase.

As Tron approached Clu to keep him at bay, Flynn shouted, "Tron, the other Programs have survived without you! They'll take care of Clu. _We _need you now, not them. Juno needs you!"

Gritting his teeth, Tron looked from Flynn to Juno.

Tears were falling from her eyes as she continued to yell at him to come with them. Tearing his eyes from her, he looked to Clu. The Program was rising to his feet, leaving him with little time to make a decision. His fellow Programs had been steadily turning against Clu, creating factions. As Rinzler, he'd often gone to hunt them down, Clu having considered them a very real threat. It was possible that he'd eventually be brought down. And all this had been done without Tron there to help them. A low rumbling from above made him look up just as _The Rectifier_ was nearing the portal.

"Tron!" Juno cried, forcing his attention back to her. Looking at her, he forced himself to believe what Flynn said about his fellow Programs. If he was no longer needed on the Grid to protect his fellow Programs, there was nothing keeping him there. The only thing left for him to do was to continue to fight for and protect the Users. Right now, the ones who needed him were the three Users at the portal and the ISO.

Turning his back to Clu, Tron sprinted towards the portal, keeping his eyes locked on Juno. Reaching the very edge of the walkway, he jumped. His foot hit the other side but slid out from beneath him, causing him to fall backwards. He was hardly able to hold onto the ledge due to the wind created by the portal, and he was steadily losing his grip. But just before he fell to his death, Sam ran away from the group and grabbed his arm, hauling him back up onto the walkway.

"Juno will never let me hear the end of it if I let your ass get derezzed," he stated, getting back to his feet as they both ran to the portal.

Tron said nothing but gave Sam a thankful smile, hurrying over to the portal.

The moment he was in the portal with the others, Juno had her arms wrapped tightly around his waist in what he suspected was an attempt to keep him there just in case he changed his mind. Beside him Quorra pressed herself into Sam's side while Flynn, holding his side from where Clu must have kicked him, stood on the other side of his son.

Sparing a quick glance at them all, Sam raised Flynn's disc above his head instead of having his father do it because of his injury. The wind became even more intense as the disc left his hands, levitating high above their heads and activating the portal.

"No!"

Everyone turned their attention to Clu as he ran at them, desperate to stop them. The light emitting from the portal stopped him in his tracks, however, forcing him to bring his arm up to shield his eyes.

Juno hid her face in Tron's chest, eyes shut tight against the light while everyone else closed their eyes, stunned by the sudden brightness. But just as quickly as the light appeared, it was gone, replaced by a feeling of intense lightheadedness for a split second before everything went dark.

* * *

_**Coffee keeps me awake to write, but reviews keep me motivated to write!**_


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: **_**Extended chapter and edited.**_

* * *

Exactly how much time had passed was unknown to Juno, but steadily the fog began to clear from her mind and she slowly opened her eyes.

Instead of waking to the dark Grid illuminated by circuitry, she woke up to find herself lying on the cold floor in a dark basement, the off-yellow light coming from a streetlamp shining through the black being the only source of light.

They were home.

The coolness of the floor sending a chill through her, she rose to her knees, fighting the nausea she was feeling. Falling from her knees to her butt, she leaned back against the desk while coughing, tilting her head back and shutting her eyes. The same headache she'd had when arriving on the Grid was back in spades, and she prayed it would dissipate just as quickly as it had then.

As the headache began to dull and her coughing ceased, a series of coughing in front of her caught her attention, and she slowly opened her eyes and saw that Sam and Kevin were coming to as well along with Tron and Quorra.

Sam pressed his palm to his head and sat up, taking a few deep breaths once he got over the coughing. Beside him, his father had a harder time adjusting to the change after being in the Grid for so long, but eventually got over it and got to his knees. He was pale, but smiling.

The two Programs with them, however, were coughing madly, never before having faced such "imperfect" air, or real air for that matter, and struggled to adjust. It would take them a good while to get used to it the change.

Juno still couldn't believe that Tron was there with them. After all his protests she hadn't expected him to come with them, even with her pleading. But she was elated that he had. She had Tron, and Sam had Quorra and his father. She never believed in perfect, but this was as close as things came to perfection.

Shaking his head once more to clear it, Sam looked at his dad, a wide smile on his face. "Welcome home, Dad."

"You don't know how much I've missed all this. Even the dust!" he said, wiping a finger across the floor, leaving a line in the thick dust. He chuckled at the sight.

Coughing, hand on her chest, Quorra asked hoarsely, "Why can't I breathe?"

"It's the dust and other stuff in the air," Sam explained, helping her to her feet.

Tron, for the most part, got to his feet on his own as he continued to cough.

Standing, her nausea passing, she went to Tron's side and said, "After a while you'll stop coughing, promise. If not, well, I've got some stuff at home that should help."

Tron nodded through his coughs, and looked around at his surroundings. "This place is a mess," he rasped.

She smiled and patted his shoulder lightly, and said, "Welcome to the User world. It's not as neat and tidy as the Grid, but I promise not all places are this dirty."

Quorra leaned against Sam, his arm around her while she coughed, and she asked the million dollar question, "So, what's next?"

"We change the world?" he suggested, shrugging. "I don't know, but the world is going to have questions about your disappearance, Dad."

Kevin sighed. "I can't exactly tell them I got stuck in the Grid, at least not yet." Sighing, he added, "I'll think of something. But first I need to get a feel for things again."

"Well, how about we all go home to sleep on it?" Juno offered, utterly exhausted. Looking at Sam, she asked, "I'm guessing that Kevin and Quorra are going home with you?"

Sam nodded. "Yeah. I've got a guest bedroom, and I'll take the couch until things get situated." Rubbing the back of his neck, he stiffened and looked at his hand. "Although, I think we're all going to get some interesting looks on the way home."

It occurred to her then that they were all in their light-suits, the circuitry glowing brightly. While she wasn't typically self-conscious she did not want to be stared at as though she were a freak.

Remembering her newly purchased items still in her car, she perked up and said, "I still have the clothes in my car from my shopping trip yesterday. I have a few shirts and a jacket for my brother, but I only bought him one pair of jeans and boots. I have more than enough for me and Quorra, but, uh…" she trailed off, looking from Sam, to Kevin, to Tron. She had

"I always kept a spare change of clothes in my office," Kevin assured her.

"Is there a problem with what we're already wearing?" Tron asked. His voice was still raspy from coughing, but for the most part he'd stopped coughing altogether.

A smile tugged at her lips.

The light-suits were normal apparel for Tron and Quorra, but in the User world people would probably think they belonged at a UFO convention. They really didn't need that kind of attention.

"Around here, we have different standards for clothing," she explained.

Sam snorted. "What she's trying to say is that if anyone sees us like this we'll be called freaks and be on YouTube within the hour."

"What's YouTube?" Quorra question, a curious expression on her face, and both Kevin and Tron mirrored her expression.

Groaning, Sam ran his hand over his face then looked to Juno with a tired chuckle. "I think we're going to have to take a day or two to explain things thoroughly, what do you think?"

"I'll say," she agreed, already deciding that she would take a few days off work to help Tron get used to things, as well as to allow her wounds to heal. "I'm going to go get those clothes."

Sam nodded, finding his little device he'd left behind on the desk with her keys, and mumbled something about the Grid before getting to work.

As long as he didn't hop back into the Grid, she didn't really care what he did and retrieved her keys.

Walking through the game room, the games still playing, she stepped outside before stopping just outside the door. For a long moment, she just stood there, head tilted back and breathing deep. The air didn't smell great, but it was real air and the breeze felt amazing against her tender face. And it was nice and cool out. In the Grid she could never tell if it were hot or cold, warm or cool. It was hard to explain, but the temperature was almost nonexistent. Though she was a little chilly, she didn't mind the chill as goose bumps came to her exposed skin. The sensation was one that she'd missed.

Sighing, she got back to the task at hand and went to her Camaro. Rummaging around in the shopping bags, she pulled out two pairs of jeans and two tee-shirts – one purple and the other black – along with two jackets, and some underclothes, setting them on the seat. Quorra was a bit taller, Juno was sure that her clothes would more or less fit the ISO seeing as the jeans had yet to be hemmed, though the bra might be a bit big on her seeing as Juno's chest was a little fuller. Next, she retrieved the pair of jeans and black leather jacket meant for her brother, two shirts – one dark blue and one brown – and two pairs of boxers. And to think, she'd damn near decided not to buy her brother more boxers.

She dumped the contents of a bag onto the floor and stuffed the chosen clothes into it before grabbing two pairs of boots from another bag for her and Quorra, and shoved them into the bag along with the black plain black sneakers she would give to Tron if they fit.

Walking back inside, she found everyone gathered in the back at the restrooms, Sam joining them a second after returning from the office with some clothes and shoes in hand.

She set the bag down and handed Sam the clothes he was missing from the pile he had, and then gave Tron and Quorra theirs.

"I don't think any of these will fit you, Dad," Sam observed, looking at the clothes.

"Don't worry about it. If anyone asks I'll tell them I'm a Zen master or something" Kevin assured him, receiving a chuckle for both his son and Juno. Looking at the Programs, he added with amusement, "You two might want to help them out getting dressed though."

"Huh?" Sam looked at the Programs and smirked.

Both Tron and Quorra were staring at the clothes like they were foreign objects.

Smiling, Juno linked her arm with Quorra's. "I'll give you a hand."

With a gracious smile, the two women went into the ladies room while Sam and Tron went into the men's.

Juno undressed first in order to show Quorra how everything went on after removing their discs to derez their light-suits, but what should have taken a couple of minutes was taking quite a bit longer seeing as Juno was now somewhat teaching Quorra about User clothes and what bra was and how to put it on. It was strange having to teach someone who wasn't a child about bras. The ISO insisted that they had similar things on the Grid, but that they could be created just by altering the clothing on the disc. Things like zippers, buttons, and hooks were completely foreign to her. Both stood side-by-side so that they wouldn't see anything they weren't supposed to, but once Quorra succeeded in getting the bra and panties on, Juno stared at her, speechless.

Quorra frowned and looked at herself. "Is something wrong? Am I not wearing them right?"

"No, you're fine, I just didn't expect your circuitry to be on you outside the Grid," she commented, fascinated in a non-creepy kind of way.

The woman was marked with thin, glowing white lines of circuitry from her collarbone to her toes. Some of the circuitry formed a circle on her hips and ribs, while other lines were made up of sharp angles and whatnot, leaving only her arms bare of circuitry, save for the glowing ISO symbol.

"I don't see why they wouldn't be here. They've been a part of me since I was created in the Sea of Simulation," Quorra said, looking at herself, relieved that she hadn't done something wrong. Then she looked at Juno. "_You're _the one who looks strange. Everyone on the Grid has circuitry etched into their skin."

"No one here has circuitry," she explained, crossing her arms over her bra clad chest. "We're going to have to come up with an explanation for it. Come on, let's finish up before they wonder what's taking so long."

When they were finally done, the two walked out of the restroom and found the men already out waiting for them, Sam slipping a computer chip of some kind onto a chain before putting it around his neck. But Juno's attention was on Tron. Her brother's clothes fit him perfectly.

Tron and Marcus were about the same height and build, but Tron wore the clothes much better in her opinion. The dark wash jeans were fitted nicely, the dark blue shirt was slightly loose but it was obvious that he was incredibly muscular. All in all, she preferred him in User clothing. If possible he looked more attractive.

But there was one small dilemma – the light blue circuitry on his thumbs, index and middle fingers were visible. If he took the jacket off, she was sure that she would see the circuitry on his arms as well.

Rubbing the back of his neck, already aware of the problem, Sam asked, "Think we can attribute it to some new kind of ultraviolet tattooing?"

"Under a blacklight, maybe, sure, but what about when we're out and about? How do we explain it then?" she questioned. The UV tattoo lie could only go so far and would be restricted mostly to the club she worked at since blacklights were everywhere.

Sam threw his arms up. "Makeup, long-sleeved shirts, gloves, I don't know."

"We'll figure it out later," Kevin decided, still in his clothes from the Grid. "In the meantime, what do we do?"

No one spoke as they thought for a long moment.

Breaking the contemplative silence, Sam said, "Well, I was going to page Alan, get him down here." Looking at his father, he added, "I think he'll want to see you."

"Wouldn't mind seeing my old buddy," Kevin agreed with a nod. "But," he began, turning his attention to Juno and Tron, "You two should probably leave. My story will be hard enough for Bradley to swallow. Seeing a young double of himself might be a bit much."

Juno nodded with a half-smile. "The poor guy would probably have heart failure."

"Why would seeing someone who looks like him be an issue?" Tron questioned, not understanding.

"He's never been to the Grid, Tron," Kevin reminded him. "I was aware that Programs tend to look like the Users who created them, but he might need things explained before he sees you so he can brace himself."

"Oh." Tron didn't sound like he understood any more than he had before, but he let the question drop. Juno made a note to explain it in better detail later.

"Guess we'll get going," Juno said but didn't move to leave. After a few seconds, she went to Kevin and hugged him. "I'm glad you're home."

Returning her hug tightly, he kissed the top of her head. "Me too, Juno."

Sighing, she backed out of the hug and took Tron's arm, leading him away from the others. But then a thought came to her and she looked back at Sam with a frown. "Um, you came here on your bike, right?"

He nodded. "Yeah."

"Well, I know you can fit two on it, but how are you going to fit _three_?"

Realization hitting him, he scratched the back of his neck. "Uh… I didn't think about that."

"I'll get a ride from Bradley," Kevin announced.

"Dad," Sam started. "He's going to be in enough shock that you're alive. You sure him giving you a ride back to my place is the best idea?"

Kevin snorted. "Alan's the most careful driver I know. Besides, it'll give me some more time to explain things."

"Okay, then. Now that that's settled, we'll get going." With one final smile, she led Tron through the game room and outside.

* * *

Everything was so different from the Grid. The light was strange and yellowish, the streets weren't clean, the smells were foreign, and it was cold, the temperature not like the Grid at all. But despite the differences, he wasn't put off by the User world. It was fascinating. The clothes were something he'd have a hard time getting use to though. They weren't skintight like the light-suit had been and felt too loose, but Sam had assured him that they were supposed to be a little loose. Apparently, if clothes were skintight on men that might mean that they were too small, but on women it was okay. Sam hadn't made much sense so he'd just nodded. Later he hoped that he could get Juno to explain things more.

A few feet away from the building, Juno stopped at a silver colored vehicle.

When he didn't make a move, she looked at him and indicated to the door opposite of hers. "Get in. It's unlocked."

Walking around the vehicle, he stared at the door for a moment before reaching for the handle and opening the door. It was vaguely similar to some of the vehicles on the Grid but very different at the same time. The interior was black leather and there were clothes and other objects scattered over the back seat, most of which he didn't recognize. A second later they were moving.

Glancing at him, Juno said, "Hey, before we go back to my place I want to show you something, okay?"

"That's fine," he said. "What do you want to show me?"

"Well, I haven't been to the beach in a while. It'll be sunrise soon and…" she trailed off, tapping her fingers on the wheel. "I thought you might like to see why I like it so much there since you've never been to the beach or seen a sunrise."

Recalling what she'd said about the beach and sunrise, he was honored that she wanted to show him something special to her. He had to admit that he was curious about what made it special.

Sitting back in the seat, he watched the world go by, letting his thoughts wander to what the beach might look like as well as what the rest of the world looked like. As the minutes ticked by, he thought over his decision to leave the Grid. If Flynn hadn't explained why he should leave the way he had, Tron wasn't sure he'd have left. But the way he'd described why he should leave made sense and he was able to go against his programming to some degree and join them in the portal rather than going after Clu.

Clu…

Tron briefly wondered what would become of the backstabbing Program. Would the factions on the Grid take him down or would he continue to control all the Programs? He didn't know and probably never would. What mattered was that Juno, Flynn, Sam, and Quorra were safe. He would just have to try to be positive and hope that Clu would get what he deserves.

"You okay?" Juno asked gently, pulling him from his thoughts. "You've been quiet for a while."

"Sorry, I was just thinking about the Grid." Sighing, he explained further. "I'm concerned about whether or not the factions will be able to take down Clu."

"I'm sure it'll all work out," she assured him. "At least he won't be able to get out now."

Juno had a point.

Without Flynn's disc, Clu wouldn't be able to get out. In the back of his mind, though, Tron remembered how Clu had talked about searching for a way to get out without the need for the disk. Against his better judgment, he decided not to bring it up. The chance of Clu actually succeeding were slim to none.

At least, he hoped the chances were slim to none.

* * *

Sometime later they finally reached the beach. It was getting light out but the sun had yet to show itself over the ocean, much to her relief. She wanted Tron to see the sunrise over the ocean. It was a beautiful sight and important to her. To watch the sunrise with Tron seemed fitting. The chaos they went through in the Grid was over. Today was the start of a new day. In her mind she knew that her mother would want her to share the moment on the beach with him. She would have liked him, she was sure of it.

Finding a place to park, she got out of the car, taking off her shoes and indicating for Tron to do the same. She tossed their shoes in the car before taking his hand, flashing him a small smile, and leading him onto the beach towards the water, giggling at his expression as he walked on the sand. It was a little difficult to walk on and was cold, but it was a pleasantly familiar sensation to her, one that brought back both good and bad memories.

"I never expected to…" Tron trailed off, searching for the right word. "To _feel _so much in this world. The ground's cold, but the air is gradually getting warmer. Everything is contradicting itself."

She gave his hand a squeeze. "That's how things are here. There isn't just one temperature. In some places it'll be freezing during the night but blazing hot during the day. And Users – people – are warmer than Program's, but I guess you already knew that."

"You still feel a little too warm as compared to Programs on the Grid, but it's not unpleasant." Sighing, he shook his head in wonder. "This will all take some getting used to."

"You'll get the hang of it," she promised, giving him a quick hug, before tugging on his hand, leading him down to the water where she urged him to sit on the sand.

Placing herself between his legs, she leaned back comfortably against his chest, staring out at the water. The sound of the waves crashing against the shore and the comfort of his arms going around her nearly lulled her to sleep, she was so tired. It occurred to her that she'd have to call her friend Cindy and ask her to pick up Marcus from the airport just so she could sleep and later figure out how to explain Tron. The truth was always an option, but her brother would likely try to have her committed to a mental institution while Cindy laughed at her.

"What are you thinking about," Tron whispered into her ear.

Releasing a long sigh, she shrugged. "About my brother. About how I'm going to explain you. I can't exactly tell him that you're a Program. He'd call me crazy."

"So what do we say about me?"

"I'm not sure," she admitted. "I'll talk to Sam and Kevin about it later. We don't have to worry about it right now, I guess. I'll just tell Marcus that I met you through work or something and that your parents were obsessed with the game TRON and named you after him."

"It's strange that Users are worshiped on the Grid, but that here even claiming that the Grid exists, that we exist, is considered crazy."

"We don't like the unfamiliar," Juno explained, picking up a shell and looking it over. "And we tend to fear the unknown."

"Why weren't you afraid of me or the Grid?" Tron asked, taking the shell when she handed it to him.

She thought for a moment. "I think it had a lot to do with Kevin's stories. The idea that the Grid existed, that you Programs existed, seemed normal to Sam and me when we were growing up. My brother thought the stories were cool, but that they were just stories." Shrugging, she added, "The Grid wasn't so unfamiliar to me."

Tron nodded, understanding, and they lapsed into silence.

Minutes ticked by and the sun finally rose over the ocean, its orange rays painting the sky and water. It was a breathtaking sight to behold, one that Juno was happy to share with Tron. Turning her head to look at him, she saw him staring with wide eyes out at the ocean and she grinned, looking back out over the ocean and snuggling back against Tron, letting her mind wander. Things were going to change, what those changes were she dared not think about. Clu was still alive, but they were safe to live their lives. There really was no reason for her to worry. He was stuck in the Grid with no way of getting out.

What's the worst that could happen?

* * *

_**Coffee keeps me awake to write, but reviews keep me motivated to write!**_

**A/N:**_** This is the final chapter for Part 1 of **_**"Tron****: Salvation"**_**. The sequel (Part 2) will be attached to this story, and thus the next chapter will be labeled Part 2. The next chapter is already in progress and should be up within a week.  
**_

_**Please note that the rating has gone up to **_**M**_** in light of the sequel being continued in this story. Aside from some stronger swearing, it won't be too strong of an **_**M**_** for a while, but when a chapter pops up that has strong **_**M**_** content I'll put a warning in an A/N in case the content is something you'd rather avoid reading.  
**_


	15. Chapter 15

**Tron: Salvation – Part Two**

**A/N: **_**So sorry about the delay. This chapter was harder to write than I'd anticipated and I got frustrated for a long time and stopped writing altogether – again. Writers block kills, I swear, and it still lingers.**_

**Disclaimer Update: **_**I do not own **_**Tron**_**. I'm just playing in the sandbox.**_

* * *

Juno was positively exhausted as she climbed the steps to her apartment. Never before had the steps felt like a chore, not even after a long night at work, and were the elevator not busted she would have taken it up to the third floor. When she'd been in the car, she'd looked forward to getting something to munch on, but now that she was so close to her home and her bed she sincerely doubted she'd stay awake long enough to find something substantial to eat. All she intended to do once she reached her apartment was shower, find something Tron could sleep in, and then go to sleep.

Tron…

Looking over her shoulder, she watched Tron for a few seconds before looking away with a small smile.

Even the less than lovely features of the rundown apartment building seemed to captivate him, though she was sure that the beach had amazed him more than anything else had yet to do. She'd never seen anyone's eyes light up the way his had unless they were a child. The sight had made her heart flutter and reassured her that he was right in coming with her and the others. Whatever reservations and second thoughts he had about leaving the Grid, they had to have been dimmed a little bit with the rising sun.

In the coming days, she hoped to erase all of his doubts.

Finally reaching her apartment, Juno yawned and dug around in her purse for her keys. She promptly found them and unlocked her door, motioning for Tron to follow her inside. No sooner had she locked the door behind her did she hear meowing followed by paws padding against the floor towards them.

Smiling, she bent down and scooped up the fluffy black cat, hugging her tightly. "Hey, Jinxy. How's mommy's girl, huh? I missed you," she cooed to the cat while Tron stared at them with a curious frown.

"What is that?" Tron asked, perplexed by the little creature.

"This is my cat, Jinx," she replied with a smile, walking away from the door to put some food in the cat's dish and give her clean water.

Setting the cat on the floor in the kitchen, she set about giving her pet water and food. Jinx was a pest on her best days, and if she didn't bend to the cat's will she would find her ankles being batted at along with some very loud and annoying meowing. If that food dish was empty, she had better fill it, same with the water dish. If the cat toys were put away, she damn well had better set them on the floor. The cat was the most demanding roommate on the planet.

He nodded, more to himself, and then asked, "What's its function?"

She stopped with the food dish half-filled and stared at him. "Huh?"

"The cat," he clarified. "What's its purpose?"

The question would have been incredibly funny were he not serious, so she bit back the laugh that threatened to escape her and just smiled. "Well, her purpose is to keep my feet warm at night and pester me during the day." When Tron frowned, she couldn't help but giggle, and added, "She doesn't really have a function. She's a companion that keeps me company. I take care of her, and in return I have a lifelong buddy. Not everything in my world has a true purpose exactly. Not in the way you're thinking."

Tron shook his head, looking around the room while she took care of her cat. "Everything has a function on the Grid. The circuitry throughout the city, the clothing everyone wears, everything. All the functions are specific and there isn't one thing that does not have some sort of function."

With her cat content, Juno stood and leaned back against the counter, and replied, "I guess most things here have a purpose or function, but their purposes vary from person to person."

"What do you mean?"

"Uh…" She looked around before finally picking up her cat to use as an example, receiving an unappreciative hiss from the creature as it was taken from its food. "Some people hate cats, so their purpose to them is to just cause problems or whatever. Some like cats, making their purpose more positive. For people like me who are in love with cats, her purpose is to be my friend and someone to come home to." Returning the cat to her food, she walked over to a photo of the beach she'd taken Tron to, and added, "This photo might just be some random picture of the ocean and not mean anything, but to me it's very meaningful and reminds me of my mother and other things. You get what I'm saying?"

He frowned, staring at the photo then to the cat, but eventually nodded. "You're saying that the purpose of everything in your world is based solely on the individual analyzing the object?"

"That's one way of putting it, I guess," she replied. "Some things have the same purpose to one person as it does to everyone, though, like the car I was driving. Its function is to get from point A to point B and back, but the make and model is generally a reflection of the driver's personal tastes."

"This is far more confusing than the Grid," Tron sighed, shaking his head as he walked around.

"You're telling me," she muttered.

The oddly confusing conversation was one that she knew she would have to have with him sooner or later – one of many, most likely – but she didn't intend on continuing it at the moment. She was far too tired to do so.

"Look, I'm going to go take a shower, okay?" When he frowned, she suddenly had to wonder if he knew what a shower was, so she added, "I'm going to go get cleaned up. I might be a while so, uh, I don't know. Make yourself comfortable, I guess."

Tron nodded silently and proceeded to walk around.

She watched him for a moment as he looked at a few framed photos on the wall before picking up each of the trinkets on a table. A smile graced her face in response to his reactions, but she flinched a bit when he set down on particularly fragile trinket a little roughly. She certainly hoped he wouldn't break anything while she was in the shower.

Just as she tuned to leave, there was a soft thud followed by a meow, and she turned to find her beloved cat now standing inquisitively on the back of the couch near Tron.

He stared at it for a long moment before reaching out to touch Jinx.

"Be careful with that cat," Juno cautioned seriously, bringing the man to a pause.

Only when he nodded did she walk to the bathroom to take a long overdue hot shower.

* * *

The heat of the jacket had become rather uncomfortable since arriving at Juno's home, so he finally removed the article and laid it against the back of the couch. Taking the action as an invitation, the cat promptly laid down on it and stretched languidly, a soft purr emitting from her.

Tron hesitated momentarily, recalling Juno's warning, before reaching out and resting his hand on the creatures head. The fur was unbelievably soft, so unlike anything on the Grid, and Jinx reacted by pushing her head further into his palm, brushing his skin with her cool nose.

While he didn't understand what exactly the creature was, he couldn't deny that it was indeed affectionate and enjoyed his company. The corners of his lips tugged upward in a slight, awed smile.

Turning his attention away from the cat, much to its disappointment, he proceeded to explore the rest of the apartment, captivated by everything.

Compared to his home on the Grid, her's was as cluttered as could be.

Every single wall was decorated with paintings, photos, and various other pieces of art, ensuring that not an inch of wall space went unused. The wood floor was scuffed and had clearly suffered from the abuse of other tenants, but decorative rugs hid the more horrendous marks. As cluttered and as messy as the apartment was, it was an organized mess with everything seemingly in a certain place that suited her liking.

Walking further into the apartment, he stepped through a door and found himself in her bedroom.

The black and white sheets were bunched up and kicked to the foot of the bed as though she'd gotten up in a hurry, and he recalled that she'd said that she had met Sam at the Arcade prior to coming to the Grid. Briefly he wondered why she didn't just have the bed digitized back to its original state, but then he remembered how this was not the Grid and figured things didn't work that way.

Idly, he picked at the fabric of the sheets, curious about their texture, and found that the sheets were soft, cool, and light while the blanket above it was fuzzy, warm, and a little heavier. There was a thick comforter lying on the floor, and he couldn't figure out what its purpose was if it had been kicked onto the ground.

"That comforter's a pain in the ass."

Tron turned to find Juno standing in the doorway, dragging a towel through her sopping wet hair with one hand and holding a dark brown shirt in her other. Her attire now consisted of a black tank top with blue polka dots, the red straps of her bra visible, and brown shorts that cut off mid-thigh. It was the most amount of her skin that he'd seen from her as of yet and it allowed him to see the extent of the injuries she sustained on the Grid.

On both of her arms and legs were little with patches of black and blue bruises, along with some greenish yellow ones, but her left side held the most damage. Her left leg though… her knee was one large dark bruise, complete with a gash, and the bruises ran clear up her leg to where he could even see it on her hip, made visible by how low her shorts hung on her. The left side of her face, however, looked a little better now that's she'd cleaned up and took care of it properly. Still, she looked like a walking bruise.

"Will you be all right?" Tron asked, eying her wounds, unsure about User injuries.

Juno shrugged. "Give it time and I'll be good as new. I'm just going to be sore for a while. Coming up with a story for all this will be fun." Tossing the damp towel carelessly to the floor, she yawed and asked, "Are you hungry, or anything? I mean, I was planning on going to bed, but if you need something I can wait."

"No, I'm fine," he assured her, looking around.

Smiling slightly, she asked, "It's not like the Grid, is it?" When he shook his head, she asked, "Is it good or bad?"

Tron thought about it for a long moment before he replied, "I'm not sure yet. It's different. Just… different."

Juno nodded, accepting that. "Well, uh, here's a shirt for you to sleep in. It's looser than the one you're wearing and should be more comfortable." Handing him the shirt, she then found a hairband and pulled her hair into a wet bun.

"Where exactly do I… sleep, anyways?" he asked, looking at the walls.

It occurred to Juno that he was looking for the pods that Programs slept in, and she said, "In my world we sleep in beds. Just pretend like it's one of those pods and you should be good."

Though he nodded, he didn't exactly see how it would be the same as "sleeping" in the pods, or why he had to change into something different. But he decided to humor her. Pulling his shirt over his head, he looked around before tossing it into a basket where he saw piles of clothes, and put the brown shirt. It was slightly larger than the other shirt had been and was a little cooler as well since it was made of a different fabric.

Out of the corner of his eye, Tron saw Juno move up beside him before lightly tracing her fingers along the circuitry of his left arm. An involuntary shiver shot through the arm and along his spine, the warm touch of her soft fingers on the sensitive circuits being quite a pleasant feeling.

She opened her mouth to say something, but whatever words she wanted to speak became caught in her throat and she sighed.

"Are you all right?" he asked, concerned.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm good," she assured him with a small smile. "It's just... I think we've both got some things to get used to."

Tron responded with a faint smile, taking comfort in the fact that he wasn't the only one uncomfortable with things to some degree. It hadn't occurred to him that she wouldn't be entirely comfortable with his being there, though he supposed it could be called normal that she would be. She was used to people in her world behaving a certain way and functioning in a particular faction. Just being in her world wasn't what she was used to, let alone having him in her home. There was bound to be adjusting on both their parts.

"So, um…" she trailed off, scratching the bridge of her nose nervously. "I figured you could have the bed and I'll take the couch until we sort through things. I don't exactly have a guest bedroom."

Tron stared at the bed and then at her, mildly confused. "Why can't we just share it?"

She blinked. "You want to share a bed?"

"You said that this is what you sleep in in your world, and it's certainly big enough for two people," he reasoned, watching the faint blush rise to her face. "Is that a problem?"

"No, it's not a problem, it's just, uh…" She scratched her head, thinking. After a moment, she said, "Men and women don't usually share beds unless they're a couple. Well, _I _don't share my bed with men unless I'm in a relationship. I guess what I'm trying to say is that I'm trying to figure out where we stand."

Tron nodded slowly, allowing her words to sink in.

Programs used beds only to please each other, never to sleep. While he suspected Users used beds for the same thing, he hadn't assumed there would be issues sleeping in the same bed with each other. Obviously, to some Users that meant a relationship was taking a step forward.

Were they even in a relationship?

He wasn't sure of the answer to that, though he did care about her greatly.

Being that he didn't plan to go anywhere and that they would only learn if a relationship was something they wanted to pursue if they moved forward, he replied, "I don't see a reason why we can't share the bed."

She stared at him for a fraction of a second before smiling softly, nodding. "Fair warning, I tend to sleep all over the place."

He didn't know what she meant by that and simply stood off to the side while she fiddled with the pillows and sheets, ensuring they each would have their fair share of comfort for the night.

Glancing up at him, she said, "You might want to lose the pants. It'll be pretty uncomfortable if you don't." She started working again, and then she popped her head up, eyes a tad wide. "Just keep the boxers on. Those stay on."

Nodding, he did as he was told though she wasn't sure why she suddenly saw the need to point out that he should leave the boxers on. He already knew that, but she probably just wanted to be certain that he didn't take them off as well in case he got the wrong idea. A slight smirk tugged at his mouth at the notion that women on the Grid and in the User world were similar in terms of thinking when it came to men and making sure they were on the same wavelength.

Juno inspected her work momentarily then climbed under the covers, stretching languidly before staring at his arms and legs as he climbed in after her. "Where were you when the lights went out?" she asked jokingly, indicating to his glowing blue-white circuitry along his body.

"You don't like the dark?"

She shook her head. "Damn near had to go to therapy for it as a kid, but my brother helped me through my fear, especially after he enlisted in the military."

Scooting closer to him once he was under the covers, Juno yawned, pillowing her head on his shoulder. She turned her eyes up at him, noticing that he was kind of just staring at random spots in the room. With a soft smile, closing her eyes and getting comfortable against him, she said, "Just close your eyes and let your mind go blank. Do what you'd do if you were in one of those pods."

Shifting his arm under her so that he too was comfortable, he nodded, shutting his eyes for a few minutes only to open them so he could look at Juno. Her eyes were shut and her lips were ever so slightly parted, having fallen asleep almost instantly once her eyes were shut. She looked so peaceful, the stress gone from her face.

Smiling, he once again shut his eyes and before long he lapsed into a state of in-activeness – sleep, as Juno would call it. If her peaceful expression was what he'd fall asleep to every night then he could most definitely get used to living in the User world.

* * *

_**Coffee keeps me awake to write, but reviews keep me motivated to write!**_


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